2021 · Crianza

ValSotillo is the family-run estate of Bodegas Ismael Arroyo in Sotillo de la Ribera, at the heart of Ribera del Duero. Founded in 1979 by pioneer Ismael Arroyo—one of the appellation’s founding figures—the winery remains in Arroyo family hands. It farms Tinta del País organically, without herbicides, fungicides, fertilizers or irrigation, using manual pruning, traditional bush vines, hand harvesting and natural-yeast fermentation. Wines are aged in American and French oak and then in the family’s historic, hand-excavated 16th-century underground cellar, where natural temperature and humidity provide stable conditions. The estate’s traditional, low-intervention approach and focus on local vineyards define its range of Ribera del Duero wines.