Royal Reserva 1970 (3 bottles) Bodegas Franco-Españolas - (Logroño, La Rioja) D.O.: Rioja Rioja Vintage Rating 1970: VERY GOOD "Bodegas Franco-Españolas was born in 1890 as the union between France and Spain at a critical moment in Rioja, when the French came to the region trying to replace their vineyards devastated by the phylloxera disease. It was the origin of the "fine wines of Rioja." All this led Frederick Anglade Saurat, a native of Bordeaux, to found Franco-Spanish Wineries in 1890. The first harvest, a year later, results in the winery's iconic wines: Diamante and Estilo Burgoña. This was renamed Rioja Bordón in the 1950s, and in 2017 it was redesigned as Bordón. In 1920, fifteen years after Anglade's death, the French sold their shares and the winery became totally Spanish. King Alfonso XIII visited the winery in 1903 and in 1925. Ernest Hemingway did so in 1956. The end of Prohibition in the US in 1933 and the resurgence of the Regulatory Council in 1953 will give a boost to the exports of Rioja wines. Franco-Spanish has a presence in major European cities, as well as in Caracas, Buenos Aires, Havana and New York. 1964 is an excellent vintage, perhaps the best of the century. In 1984, the businessman Marcos Eguizábal (1919 – 2009) bought Bodegas Franco-Españolas, and in 1990 the first centenary of the Winery was celebrated. In 2012 the image of the Diamante and Rioja Bordón wines was renewed, and in 2013 the winery received the 'The Best of' award from Wine Tourism in the category of Innovative Experiences. In 2015 the winery celebrates its 125th anniversary and in 2016, Borja Eguizábal takes over management, giving way to the third generation of the Eguizábal family as owners of the winery. In 2017, Rioja Bordón was relaunched, which became Bordón, with a new concept: “Shamelessly classic”. Its privileged location, on the banks of the Ebro River, has made Bodegas Franco-Españolas a witness to the history of Logroño. In the hands of the Eguizábal Family since 1984, it is currently immersed in new projects and is a benchmark among the leisure and cultural offerings of La Rioja with its varied wine tourism proposals."