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Spain

Spain has more vineyard acreage than any other country, but comes in third behind Italy and France in terms of volume of wine produced. The vineyard land is extremely arid in many areas and can’t be densely planted because the vines won’t get enough moisture. This, plus rather antiquated VITICULTURAL practices, limits YIELDS in most parts of the country. The exception is the area around JEREZ where yields are very high. In the past, aside from SHERRY, the RIOJA DOCA red wines, and the SPARKLING WINES from the CAVA DO (mainly from Penedès in CATALONIA), most of Spain’s wines didn’t have a following outside the country. This is partially because the old style of many Spanish wines—such as high-ALCOHOL, full-bodied (see BODY) reds and neutral, low-ACIDITY whites—weren’t popular internationally. But Spain is changing this image. It began by revamping its APPELLATION system, DENOMINACIÓN DE ORIGEN (DO), after criticism that many areas with DO status didn’t produce wines of acceptably high quality. A new higher classification, DENOMINACIÓN DE ORIGEN CALIFICADA (DOCa), has more exacting standards than those established for DOs. While there are over fifty regions with DO status, only two—RIOJA and PRIORAT—are classified as DOCa. New, tighter DO regulations, plus planting in cooler regions, modernizing winery equipment, and improving winemaking techniques have all contributed to improving the overall quality of Spain’s wines. Additionally, both red and white wines have benefited because long AGING requirements have been lowered. In the case of white wines, such requirements have been eliminated altogether because extensive oak aging tended to eradicate their freshness and make many seem dull. Conversely, some aged red Riojas are quite highly regarded. Many DOs throughout Spain are notable in their own right. SHERRY is by far Spain’s most famous wine and one of the world’s classic FORTIFIED WINES. It’s produced in Jerez (JEREZ-XÉRÈS-SHERRY Y MANZANILLA DE SANLÚCAR DE BARRAMEDA DO) in a variety of styles. The nearby DOs of MÁLAGA and MONTILLA-MORILES also produce similarly styled fortified wines, which usually sell at lower prices. The Rioja DOCa is still best known for its red wines but is now producing improved white wines, for which it’s attaining a good reputation. The white wines from the GALICIA and RUEDA DOs are also gaining stature. Spain’s Catalonia area—particularly with the Priorat DOCa, which attracted international attention in the 1990s; the PENEDÈS DO; and potentially with DOs like TARRAGONA—is gaining a reputation for high-quality red and white STILL WINES, in addition to their MÉTHODE CHAMPENOISE sparkling wines. The red wines from the RIBERA DEL DUERO DO have a solid reputation based on the historically renowned Vega Sicilia wine estate and the more recently acclaimed Tinto Pesquera wines from Alejandro Fernandez. Other high-quality wine estates are now also in place in this region. The TORO DO in the Castile and León region is viewed as one of the country’s rising stars. Although improvements are underway, large amounts of ordinary wine are still produced from the vast central plains south of Madrid. This includes the wine-producing region of LA MANCHA and the neighboring ALICANTE, JUMILLA, UTIEL-REQUENA, and YECLA regions, as well as CARIÑENA farther north. Some of the other Spanish DOs are ALELLA, ALMANSA, CAMPO DE BORJA, CONCA DE BARBERÀ, CONDADO DE HUELVA, COSTERS DEL SEGRE, EMPORDÀ-COSTA BRAVA, MENTRIDA, NAVARRA, RÍAS BAIXAS, RIBEIRO, TARRAGONA, TERRA ALTA, VALDEORRAS, VALDEPEÑAS, VALENCIA, and VINOS DE MADRID. A large number of grape varieties are used throughout Spain for the diverse styles of wine. Red varieties include Azal Tinto, Baga, Borracal, Caiño, Cariñena (CARIGNAN), Espadeiro, Ferron, Garnacha Tinta (GRENACHE), GRACIANO, Mazuelo (Carignan), Mencía, Monastrell (MOURVÈDRE), Moreto, Pansá Rosado, TEMPRANILLO (also called Cencibel,Ull de Llebre, and Tinto del Pais), and Tinta Pinheira. The most widely planted white variety in Spain and, in fact, the world is AIRÉN. Other white varieties in this country include Albariño (ALVARINHO), Garnacha Blanca (Grenache), Godello (VERDELHO), LOUREIRO, Malvar, MALVASIA, Merseguera, Moscatel (MUSCAT), PALOMINO, PARELLADA, PEDRO XIMÉNEZ, Planta Nova, Torrontés, Trajadura, Treixadura, Verdil, Viura (MACABEO), and XAREL-LO (also called Pansá Blanca). In addition, there are some plantings of French favorites including CABERNET SAUVIGNON, CABERNET FRANC, CHARDONNAY, MALBEC, MERLOT, PINOT NOIR, and SAUVIGNON BLANC.

Related Links: añ, Viognier, Castile and Leó, Jerez-Xé

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