The Museum of the Culture of Wine opens the Vivanco Reserve

Posted on October 19, 2009 by Robert McIntosh

This is the text of a press release that went out recently which I thought might be interesting to those who like Rioja and art.

There is much made of the connection of wine and art, with artists all over the world creating pieces that inspire them, but rarely are the very biggest names in art connected so clearly with wine. I have not seen the exhibition myself yet, but will add pictures and video as soon as I do. If you’ve seen it, do let me know what you think:

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Bodegas Dinastia Vivanco and its Museum of the Culture of Wine announced that the temporary exhibition entitled “Vivanco Reserve” is now open to the public.

Until March 14th 2010, visitors will have the unique occasion to see 24 items from the Vivanco family vaults that have never been shown before, from iconic masters including: Picasso, Tápies, Miró, Barceló, Juan Gris, Dürer, Lichtenstein and Hogarth.

Santiago Vivanco, director of the Museum of Wine Culture, launched the Vivanco Reserve exhibition accompanied by Pedro Sanz, President of La Rioja, and Luis Alegre, Cultural Advisor to the local government of La Rioja.

“This unique exhibition is important in establishing an historical and cultural context for appreciating wine, and the role it has played in societies around the globe. It encapsulates the connection between the two worlds of Culture and Wine, and underscores Dinastia Vivanco’s determination to showcase great art as well bring the worlds of art and wine together,” says Santiago Vivanco.

Visitors will be able to experience the culture of wine through paintings, sculpture and engraving. The assembled works stretch across the globe and through time from a Greco-Buddhist relief depicting the gods Pancika and Hariti from the Ghandaran culture of 1st century Pakistan, through Flemish paintings of de Caullery and De Wit, engravings by William Hogarth to modernist painting and lithography by Picasso, Miro and Juan Gris.

This exhibition takes place in the public areas of the Dinastia Vivanco Museum of the Culture of Wine in Briones, La Rioja, Spain, and is free to view.

Update (19/10/2009): I found a link to a video with some of the pieces from this exhibition. I apologise for the music though!

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A brief update from the vineyards of Rioja

Posted on October 3, 2009 by Robert McIntosh

I was walking around the vineyards so I thought I’d bring you some shots of what’s happening right now:

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Buy better wine and win a trip to Rioja

Posted on August 6, 2009 by Robert McIntosh
Dinastia Vivanco Museum
Image by RobWinton via Flickr

The Wine Gang celebrate their 1 year anniversary this month.

If you are not familiar of The Wine Gang (TWG), it is 5 of the UK’s most influential wine writers and communicators – Tim Atkin, Olly Smith, Tom Cannavan, Joanna Simon & Anthony Rose, who collaborate to put together a monthly newsletter with hundreds of their most recent tasting notes and buying tips.

There is a lot of content about wine on the internet, but the content TWG are providing comes from their privileged access to top tastings as well as their undoubted skill as tasters and comunicators. It is not an easy time to create a paid-for newsletter business model on the internet where everything seems to be being given away free these days, but they have managed to make a success of their new venture, so reaching the 1 year milestone ought to be celebrated.

Encouraging more people to discover wine and to buy better, more rewarding wines, is a goal that Dinastia Vivanco is happy to celebrate, so it seemed a great opportunity to help to spread the Culture of Wine by offering to create a unique prize for TWG subscribers.

Any paid-for subscriber of TWG has a chance of winning a three day trip for two to Rioja to visit the region AND a special visit to Dinastia Vivanco as well.

The main event of the visit will be to spend a day, along with one of The Wine Gang, as guests of Dinastia Vivanco. You will visit the facilities in the company Rafael Vivanco who will give you a personal tour of the ‘tribute to wine’ the Vivanco family have built in the mediaeval town of Briones.

In the winery you’ll discover how Rioja is made, and taste the different ages, grapes and styles of Rioja wines, and maybe even discover white and rose Rioja for the first time. This tour will also include an exclusive opportunity to taste future releases straight from the barrels in the underground winery and cellar.

You will get to see hundreds of wine treasures in the Dinastia Vivanco Museum of the Culture of Wine including films, art, sculpture, archaeological artefacts, corkscrews, glassware; in short, anything and everything to do with wine’s development over many thousands of years.

Finally, you will be treated to some fabulous Riojan cuisine in the Museum’s restaurant that boasts panoramic views over the family’s vineyards and the Cantabrian mountain range.

Sound good? Check out The Wine Gang and subscribe now to have a chance to enter the competition.

If you win, you might even get to star in some future posts on this blog – what MORE could you ask for!?

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Still waiting for my little starling

Posted on July 28, 2009 by Robert McIntosh

saturninoI apologise to the lovely people who sent me a message about getting hold of a copy of Saturnino Starling in the Land of Wine.

I have two copies of the book here already to give away, but I am going to hold off announcing the winners until I have a bit more news for everyone else as to how you can get hold of the book in the UK and US. Sorry!

I hope to work out a way to get this book to you in a timely and cost effective manner – and I have a couple of options.

More soon.

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