Spain Spain, Like Its Neighbor to the North, France, Has Been a Wine Producing Country for Centuries
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Spain Spain, like its neighbor to the north, France, has been a wine producing country for centuries. However, because of an almost endless string of invasions, blights, and civil wars, it has only recently come out and shown the world what it can do. It is one of the most exciting wine countries in the world today, making wine with old world know-how and tradition but in a style that new world and old world wine lovers can both enjoy. The biggest reason for Spain’s success with the vine is the combination of its low latitude and average high altitude. In fact, the overwhelming majority of Spain’s vineyards lie at higher altitudes than any major French wine region! That is not the only thing Spain has going for it as a wine producer: Ideal conditions for the vine; hot and dry Mediterranean climate, which thwarts most diseases; lots of investment coming in; many different cultures giving different perspectives on style and technique; a nice balance between international varieties and an ever increasing amount of indigenous grapes; and the ability to keep prices relatively low (for now). With all these amazing attributes, expect to see Spanish wines start to dominate the wine lists and retail shelves of the world. Geography: Spain is one of two countries which make up the Iberian Peninsula in the southwest corner of Europe. Spain is bordered by Portugal to the west, the Bay of Biscay to the north, France to the Northeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the south and east. Though it is one country, Spain has 17 autonomous regions, some of which really do consider themselves their own country, complete with a different language and their own government. Galicia, on the northwest Atlantic coast, directly above Portugal, is cut off from the rest of Spain by mountains. This is really the only part of Spain that is not very arid. In fact, it is extremely wet and cool thanks to the weather coming off the Atlantic Ocean. This region is Celtic in origin and the people speak (along with Spanish) Gallego, which is related to Portuguese. This is the only region of Spain not affected by Moorish influence, as it has never been invaded. In the northeast surrounding the city of Barcelona is autonomous region of Catalunya (Catalonia in English and Cataluña in Spanish). This region used to include all of Roussillon in France, and indeed, most of this corner of Spain and France do not even recognize the border between the two countries. Catalan and Spanish are spoken here and Barcelona is their capital city. Castilla Y León is one of the most important wine regions. It includes such D.O. stars as Rioja, Ribera del Duero, and Toro. In the south of the country lies Andalucía where the famous sherry country is found around the port city of Cádiz in the far southwest of the country. The region of Castilla – La Mancha in the center of the country surrounding the capital city of Madrid has more land planted to the vine then most countries do! Climate: Because of Spain’s many different regions it is hard to describe a general climate. Overall, except for Galicia, in the northwest corner, Spain is dry and arid with light to extreme Mediterranean influence. The high plateaus of Castilla y León and Castilla-La Mancha have extreme continental climates, meaning they can have baking summers with freezing winters. Because of the altitude, diurnal temperature swings are very extreme in the summer, getting very cool at night but with dry, hot to very hot days. At lower altitudes along the Mediterranean Coasts, the climate is warm Mediterranean with most, if not all, the rain (whatever there is) falling in the winter months. More specific climates will be discussed below. Grape Varieties Primary Grape Varieties: Many indigenous grapes alongside international varieties. Northwest – Mencía (red), Albariño, Godello, Treixadura, Loureira (all white). Castilla y León – Tempranillo, Garnacha (both red), Verdejo, Viura (white). Aragón/Catalunya – Garnacha, Tempranillo, Cariñena, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot (all red), Viura (called Macabeo here), Garnacha Blanca, Parrellada, Xarell-lo, (all white). Castilla-La Mancha – Tempranillo, Garnacha (reds), Airén (white). Valencia/Southwest – Monastrell (red). Andalucía/Sherry Country – Palomino, Moscatel (Muscat of Alexandria), Pedro Ximenéz (all white). Secondary Grape Varieties: A huge amount of indigenous varieties (l learn of a new variety every day!!). The star grape variety of Spain is without a doubt the Tempranillo grape. The grape is named from the Spanish temprano, which means early. This is because, the Tempranillo grape is an early ripener which, unfortunately, makes it susceptible to early spring frosts. Spain is the perfect place for this grape because of its very warm, dry climate where frost is not as much of an issue as in other parts of the world. Staying true to Spain’s culturally diverse people, there seems to be a different synonym for Tempranillo in every little town you go to, and this grape is grown all over the country. Some of its synonyms include: Ull de Llebre in Catalunya; Cencibel in La Mancha; Tinto Fino and Tinta del Pais in Ribera del Duero; Tinto de Toro in the Toro region. Other names include Tinto Madrid, Tinto de la Rioja, and Tinto Aragónez, as well as Aragónez and Tinto Roriz in Portugal. It is grown in practically all red wine regions of Spain and can produce different styles of wine depending on what climate it has adapted to over the centuries as well as the wine-making methods used (i.e. French or American oak, minimal or extended cask ageing, etc. ). Unlike grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Tempranillo does not have a characteristic style. It blends well with a variety of grapes; traditionally Garnacha and Cariñena in Rioja. More and more, blends of Tempranillo with international varieties such as Cabernet, Syrah, and Merlot are becoming more popular. Appellation System and Aging Regime Hierarchy of Quality wine Designations (from top to bottom): Denominación de Origen Calificada (DOCa or just DOC) – Spain’s top wine distinction, so far awarded to only Rioja, Priorat, and just recently Ribera Del Duero. Denominación de Origen (DO) – controlled appellation governed by a regional body called the Consejo Regulador, which decides on regional boundaries, permitted vine varieties, maximum yields, limits of alcoholic strength, and any other limitations pertaining to the zone. Spain’s answer to the French AOC. Denominación de Origen Pago (DO Pago) - reserved for single estates producing particularly creditable wines. Vino de la Tierra (VdlT) – regional wines made outside the delimited zones but still have designations of origin. The rules are much looser here and producers are free to create their own style of wines, many of which end up much better than the DO wines of the region. Example, La Granja is a wine made with a little Syrah. This does not comply with DOC standards for Ribera Del Duero so it is designated as VdlT Castilla y León, which is the autonomous zone which makes up many D.O.s including Ribera Del Duero (see map). This is Spain’s answer to the French Vin de Pays system. Vino de Mesa (VdM) – Table wine, the most basic Spanish wine. Wine Label Terms in Regards to Aging (The DOCa of Rioja has somewhat stricter rules): Joven: Indicates a wine that has not been aged or aged for less than 6 months. For reds, whites, and rosés. Crianza: Indicates a red wine has been aged for two years, six months of which must be in small oak casks (one year in Rioja). White and rosé wine must be aged for at least one year (two in Rioja), no oak aging is mandatory (6 months in small oak casks in Rioja). Reserva: Indicates a red wine which must be made from grapes in good vintages and must be aged for at least three years before release, of which one year must be in small oak casks. White and rosé wines must be aged for at least two years, of which six months must be in small oak casks (same in Rioja). Gran Reserva: Indicates a red wine that must be made from grapes in outstanding vintages and aged for at least five years, two of which must be in small oak casks. White and rosé wines must be aged for at least 4 years, of which six months must be in small oak casks (same in Rioja). The Wine Regions of Spain Organized from north to south within the autonomous area that surrounds them Galicia (Northwest Spain directly above Portugal): D.O. Rías Baixas Location: as far north west as it is possible to go in Spain, overlooking the Atlantic Ocean, with sub- regions scattered on the coast and in the country-side from the northern border of Portugal to just south of the city of Santiago de Compostela in the north. Grape Variety(s)/Wine Style: Primary White- Albariño grape - makes dry acidic whites that often have stone fruit and apples with an underlying stoniness. Secondary Whites - Loureira Blanca, Treixadura, Caiño Blanca, Torrontés and Godello Primary Reds (rarely seen or heard of outside the region) - Caiño Tinto, Espadeiro, Loureira Tinta, Sousón, Brancellao and Pedral. Climate: maritime - dominated by the Atlantic which gives the region plenty (sometimes too much) of rain with very little extremes of temperature. Food Pairing: Locals drink it with fresh seafood brought in from the Atlantic, but seafood of any kind is a great match. Previous and Current Vintages: Vintages do not vary much from year to year as there is little extreme of temperature. Scale - poor, fair, good, very good, excellent 2002 (good); 2003 (very good); 2004 (excellent); 2005 (excellent); 2006 (excellent); 2007 (excellent); 2008 (good); 2009 (very good); 2010 (very good); 2011 (very good); 2012 (very good) Note: The region is named for the flooded coastal valleys that cut into the coastline that the locals call rías.