One of our favourite export partners is Araex Grands, which supplies our best-selling Tres Reyes, Lar de Paula and Villa Conchi lines, among others. Founded in 1993 with the vision of driving exports for five of the best wine producers from Spain’s Rioja Alavesa, Araex Grands now curates a sophisticated portfolio of wines from 16 different wineries from 12 of the most prestigious Spanish wine regions.
Here’s how it happened.
In 1993, Javier Ruiz de Galarreta set up the first iteration of Araex Grands in his home town of Vitoria-Gasteiz in the heart of Rioja Alavesa. Part of the Basque Country and also the smallest and northernmost sub-zone of the world-famous Rioja wine region, Rioja Alavesa produces some of Rioja’s most outstanding wines. The problem was that its wineries—often family-owned monoculture operations spread across tiny plots clinging to rugged, high-altitude terrain—lacked access to wider markets. Galarreta wanted to change that while retaining the identity and culture of the individual wineries. He brought on board five of Rioja Alavesa’s best wine producers as founding shareholders, and together they set out to build commercial and brand awareness synergies around the concept “Excellence Made in Spain.”
The Araex Grands vision was a grand success, and today Rioja Alavesa is recognized internationally as producing some of the best Tempranillo in the world, along with the fresh and versatile Garnacha, aromatic and intense Graciano, and the highly tannic and acidic Mazuelo. Its outstanding white wines are also attracting attention, often produced from a blend of Viura (which is also used in cava) and Malvasia. And wine drinkers everywhere watch for those distinctive notes of coconut, vanilla and sweet spices from the French and American oak in which the best examples of Rioja Alavesa wines are aged.
While Rioja Alavesa remains ARAEX’s ‘hero region,’ the company’s success in bringing wines to international attention spurred Galarreta to bring in winegrowers from other respected Spanish regions, including Ribera del Duero, Toro, Rueda, Priorat, Navarra, Castilla-La Mancha and Jerez. Particularly for the lesser-known wine regions, the access to Araex Grands’ strong international distribution networks and marketing power has been huge. For example, their best wines now appear on the menus in Spanish flag carrier Iberia Air’s Business Class and Premium Lounges thanks to an Araex-Iberia partnership—a huge shot in the arm for both wineries and regional tourism.
Araex Grands’ commitment doesn’t stop there. In 2014, the company set up the Spanish Fine Wines Institute to promote and spread the culture and consumption of quality Spanish wine. As of 2024, the institute has trained over 5,000 industry professionals, arranged over 3,000 professional visits to wineries, and established a presence in 70-plus countries worldwide.
We should mention that Araex Grands is also an environmental leader. The small independent wineries it represents have always regarded themselves as caretakers of the land. Now, with consumers too coming on board, the company has taken the opportunity to implement Project Environmental Footprint, an EU-certified sustainability program that covers the entire lifecycle—not just viticulture, but also using natural techniques and reducing carbon in wine elaboration, as well as shrinking the environmental footprint in logistics and commercialisation. The project achieved almost 30% emissions reduction across the lifecycle at the two wineries where it was initially trialled, and Araex Grands is working to instigate it across all the estates.
Galarreta’s ongoing efforts to promote the cause of Spanish wine have received numerous accolades, including the Lifetime Achievement Award from Meininger in 2024 for his contributions to quality Spanish wine.
