Marta Appellaniz Gallego produces wine at Bodegas y Viñedos Pujanza in the Rioja Alavesa area close to Laguardia. The daughter of Rioja grape growers, Marta studied food science at the Universidad del Pais Vasco before obtaining her masters degree in enology and viticulture at the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, one of the premiere universities in Spain for the study of ecology and viticulture.

In 2002, Marta joined Pujanza, a relatively new winery established in 1998 by Carlos San Pedro, its owner/winemaker. Interestingly, the year Marta joined the winemaking team was the same year of a very difficult vintage, but the wines produced by Pujanza in 2002 excelled nevertheless. Since that time, Marta has worked in various capacities at the winery and now holds the title of chief winemaker.

The day we visited, Marta was involved in conversations about “branding” and seeking input about possible new labels. The winery produces two fine wines, Pujanza and Pujanza Norte, both Tempranillos aged in French oak.