We're going to hold our hands up here and admit that, for a number of years, we though most wine from Rioja was red, smooth and pretty boring - and our interest was only piqued if the wines from this region were really, really old... But we have seen the light (helped by Paola's three trips in two years to the region).

We've fallen in love with the whites made from the Viura grape, and have discovered how one size doesn't fit all when it comes to the reds. On trips to Rioja, we've been spellbound by the Cantabrian Mountains, the hilltop villages and the old vines - plus the tapas bars in Logroño, the wineries grouped around the Barrio de la Estación in Haro and their incredible, old underground cellars (and we'll just skip over the karaoke in Rioja Oriental's city of Calahorra).

Our collection of Rioja wines includes those reds aged in the classic way - Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva - plus those from producers who focus less on the oak regime and more on letting the grapes express where they are grown. For the whites, we range from premium age-worthy wines to a weeknight wonder.

Our range might be small, but it shows the diversity of Spain's flagship wine region.

Pharos Rioja Blanco 2019, Bodega Classica, Spain