Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018: tasting, ageing and food pairing of a Haro classic

Some riojas get ordered almost without looking at the list, and that is exactly why they deserve a second look. Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018 is one of them: a Haro classic worth tasting slowly, stage by stage.

Behind it lie almost a hundred years of history, a very particular way of understanding Rioja Alta and a long ageing in American oak that defines its style.

Plenty of people know this wine by sight, from restaurants or supermarkets. Few stop to read what is inside: old bush vines, hand harvesting and 20 months in barrel.

Here is the practical side: what is in the bottle, how to taste it, what temperature to order it at, which dish to sit down with and how not to overpay on a restaurant list.

Technical sheet · Wine

Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018

• Red
• Reserva
• DOCa Rioja

Approximate priceAbout 18 €

Winery

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao

Designation

DOCa Rioja

Grape variety

90 % tempranillo and 10 % graciano and mazuelo

Vintage

2018

Vineyard

Bush-trained vines over 40 years old

Ageing

20 months in American oak barrel and refined in bottle

Alcohol

14 % vol.

On the nose: fresh red fruit, balsamic notes, leather and a hint of tea. On the palate: long, with fresh acidity and gentle tannins.

In barrel20 months

06121824

Months · A Rioja «Reserva» requires at least 12 months in barrel.

Serve at17–18 °C

6°10°14°18°22°

Give it a few minutes in the glass; it does not need long decanting.

Pairs with

• Red meatsT-bone steak, entrecôte or chargrilled lamb
• GameStewed venison or wild boar
• Aged cheesesManchego or idiazabal
• Rioja cuisineRioja-style potatoes or chuletillas grilled over vine shoots

Data from the winery and the tasting published in the article · Reviewed on October 21, 2026. Drink responsibly. Sale prohibited to under-18s.

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao, a century in Haro

Bodegas Ramón Bilbao was founded in 1924 by Ramón Bilbao Murga himself in Haro, the capital of Rioja Alta. The town is one of the great names of Spanish wine and is home to some of the best-known century-old wineries in the appellation.

Since 1999 it has been part of Zamora Company (formerly Grupo Zamora, owned by the Restoy Zamora family), the group that also runs projects such as Mar de Frades in Rías Baixas and Cruz de Alba in Ribera del Duero.

Winemaking is led by Rodolfo Bastida Caro, who has steered the house style towards more present fruit and better-integrated oak.

The DOCa Rioja and Rioja Alta

Rioja was Spain’s first designation of origin, in 1925, and in 1991 it became the first Denominación de Origen Calificada. It spreads across La Rioja, Álava and Navarre.

It has three subzones: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa and Rioja Oriental. Haro lies in the first, in the northwest of the appellation, beside the Ebro.

Rioja Alta is the part with the most Atlantic influence. Its reds tend to have good acidity, red fruit and an ageing capacity that explains the fame of its reservas.

Vineyard and grapes of Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018

The grapes come from vineyards more than 40 years old, grown as bush vines. That is, vines that grow low and without wires, like a shrub, and yield less fruit but more concentrated.

Harvesting is by hand, in small crates, so the bunches reach the winery whole and uncrushed.

• Varieties: 90% tempranillo and 10% graciano and mazuelo.
• Ageing: 20 months in American oak barrels, followed by refinement in bottle.
• Alcohol: 14% vol.
• Appellation: DOCa Rioja.

Tempranillo provides the red fruit and the backbone of the wine. Graciano brings freshness, acidity and aromatic notes; mazuelo, called cariñena in other regions, adds colour and structure.

For reading the label: mazuelo and cariñena are the same grape. In Rioja the first name is used; in Aragon, Catalonia or Priorat, the second.

How it is made, step by step

This is the wine’s path, step by step:

• Hand harvest in small crates: the bunches don’t break in transport and don’t start fermenting too early.
• Blend of three varieties: tempranillo as the base, with graciano and mazuelo to fine-tune acidity, colour and structure.
• 20 months in American oak barrels: the wood contributes vanilla, coconut and sweet spices and softens the tannin.
• Refinement in bottle: a rest without oxygen in which the more evolved aromas appear.

American oak leaves that profile of vanilla and coconut that many associate with traditional rioja. It is one of the hallmarks of classic Haro reservas.

In the DOCa Rioja, a Reserva must age for at least 36 months, with a minimum of 12 in barrel. Ramón Bilbao Reserva spends 20 months in wood, well above what is required.

Tasting note for Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018

This is how the tasting goes, stage by stage:

• Appearance: ruby red of medium-high intensity, clean and bright.
• Nose: fresh red fruit, balsamic notes reminiscent of eucalyptus or liquorice and, after time in the bottle, leather and a hint of tea.
• Palate: fresh acidity, gentle tannins, balanced and easy to drink.
• Finish: long, with fruit and wood in their place.

Balsamic notes are those aromas that recall scrubland, eucalyptus or liquorice sweets. Leather and tea are evolution aromas: they appear with time in the bottle.

Gentle tannins means they barely dry the mouth. It is a wine that accompanies without imposing, which is why it works so well at tables with different tastes.

What temperature to order it at

Serve it between 17 and 18 °C. It needs no long decanting, but a few minutes in the glass to open up.

Choose a wide glass, the kind for aged reds. Give it a couple of swirls before the first sip: the red fruit comes out first and the bottle aromas later.

Tip from the dining room: if the bottle arrives warm at the restaurant, ask for an ice bucket for two or three minutes. A Rioja reserva above 20 °C loses freshness and the alcohol comes forward.

Shop or restaurant list: what it should cost

It is one of the easiest Rioja reservas to find in shops, and its indicative price is around €18. That is a modest figure for a Reserva with 20 months in barrel and vines more than 40 years old.

On a restaurant list, it is usual for a wine like this to cost two or three times as much: as a guide, between €36 and €54 a bottle. If they charge you much more, it is worth asking about another Rioja Alta label in the same range.

Because it is such a well-known wine, it is easy to compare. That is its great advantage in a restaurant: you know what you are going to drink and can judge whether the price is fair.

A common mistake when ordering: not checking the vintage. Many lists don’t update it; when the sommelier shows you the bottle, check that it says 2018 before it is uncorked.

What to pair Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018 with

It is a table wine in the best sense, with acidity for fat and soft tannin for meat:

• Lamb chops grilled over vine cuttings (chuletillas al sarmiento): the Rioja dish par excellence, with the embers of the vine and the fat of milk-fed lamb.
• Patatas a la riojana: the chorizo and paprika find a good counterpoint in the red fruit and vanilla.
• Grilled T-bone or rib-eye steak: the toasted crust connects with the American oak.
• Venison or wild boar stew: the wine’s balsamic notes and leather go well with game.
• Aged sheep’s cheese: a manchego or an idiazabal, with its fatty, salty edge.

Avoid delicate fish and dishes with a lot of vinegar. The wood and the acidity of the vinegar fight, and the wine seems harsher than it is.

Against another Rioja reserva: Julián Madrid Reserva 2019

To understand the Haro style, compare it with Julián Madrid Reserva 2019, from Bodegas Casa Primicia in Laguardia (Rioja Alavesa). Both spend 20 months in barrel, but not in the same kind:

• Ramón Bilbao Reserva 2018: Rioja Alta, tempranillo with graciano and mazuelo, American oak. Vanilla, balsamic notes and red fruit.
• Julián Madrid Reserva 2019: Rioja Alavesa, 100% tempranillo, French oak. Ripe black fruit, spices, toasted notes and a dairy background.

Trying them side by side shows what each oak and each subzone contributes. American tends towards the sweet and aromatic; French, towards fine spice.

You can also compare it with the Crianza from the same house, to notice what the extra months of wood and bottle add.

How long it keeps

With several years already in the bottle, this 2018 is at a good moment to drink. Its acidity and long ageing allow it to last a few more years if well stored.

Store it lying down, between 12 and 15 °C, away from light and vibrations. Once open, it keeps well for a day with the stopper in and in a cool place.

Who it is for

It is a wine for anyone looking for a classic, recognisable and reliable rioja, the kind that pleases at a table with varied tastes. Also for starting to understand what a Reserva is.

In a restaurant, its place is a grill house or a traditional eatery, where meat and stews rule.

A getaway to Haro

If you want to see where it comes from, Haro deserves a whole day. Its Barrio de la Estación concentrates century-old wineries beside the railway tracks, many of them with tours.

Every 29 June, for San Pedro, the Batalla del Vino (Wine Battle) takes place at the Riscos de Bilibio: thousands of people dressed in white end up soaked in red wine.

If you go at the weekend, book winery visits in advance: in Haro they fill up quickly, especially in spring and at harvest time.

Some lamb chops over vine cuttings, a wide glass and a Haro reserva at 17 °C? Few tables are as Riojan as that.