Find Value Wines from Spain

By BY BRYAN CRISWELL C.S.

The wine producing regions of Europe are home to some of the most lavish and sought after wines in the world. Yet some of Spain’s more obscure corners can offer some of the same great wine experience’s at a fraction of the price.

When connoisseurs talk about old world wines, they are invariably referencing famous places like Bordeaux, Burgundy, Piedmont, & Tuscany or Mosel-Saar and the Rhine. And yet Archeology reveals that grape vines have been grown in Spain since 3000 B.C., and it is believed that Phoenician traders from the eastern Mediterranean began cultivating and making wine here around 1000 BC. Today, Spain is covered by more wine vines than any other country on Earth, and will produce more wine than any country in the world other than France and Italy.

Major Wine Regions

In 1978 Spain adopted a new constitution, one that restored the regions of old and the ancient kingdoms of 1492. Listed here are the regions acknowledged as the 7-major wine growing provinces: Galicia, Castile y Leon, Ebro, Catalonia, Levent- Murcia, Meseta, Andalucia and 17 administrative regions known as communidades autónomas.

Meseta has the largest concentration of vineyards cultivating most prominently the Airen grape variety, although the finest and most recognized wines come from Galicia (Rias Baixas), Catalonia (Cava & Priorat), Andalucia (Sherry), Castilla y Leon (Rueda & Ribera del Duero) and probably the most accepted dry wine from the upper Ebro (Rioja).

Higher Quality less Money

Real value can be had in your wine purchase because you will not be paying for the inflated price of known and sought after wine regions. The world demand for wines produced from these regions are justified due to their unique growing conditions that create classic wines. Reputable regions have only a limited amount of wine to sell as only so much can be produced thereby raising the price of your purchase.

Spain has its own unique growing conditions as climate, geology and topography vary around the countryside, as will the wine styles. Location of the vineyards will strongly influence the style of wine. Galicia often referenced as the “Green Spain”, is a cool wet region that is plush and green with ample vegetation. The region is noted for producing light crisp white wines, while vineyards in the upper Ebro are warmer and set in a drier location. By being further inland the Ebro region is influenced by climatic conditions that are termed “Continental” & protected from storms and winds by the snow covered Pyrenees Mountains. The wines lend themselves to be more mid-bodied and fruit-driven, wines like Rioja, and Ribera del Duero. The Meseta Province is a parched central plateau made up of chalky bedrock, and to the southwestern region you have the sandy and sunny climate of Andalucia home to Sherry.

Sherry can be influenced by weather like any region but wine making techniques implemented by wine makers will have the most direct influence on the wines style and flavor profile from the region. Catalonia and Levent-Murcia are close to the Mediterranean so the climatic conditions are maritime thereby producing heavier, more powerful reds like the wines from Jumila, except in higher-altitude districts, where reduced heat and humidity allow the production of lighter reds and notably sparkling white Cava.

Spain no doubt has a varied typography, with each macroclimate delivering its own unique condition to its region and each specific mesoclimate of which has its own influence on each and every individual vineyard and each microclimate that directly gives each vine its own distinctive profile. These factors allow for each bottle of wine to separate itself from all other bottles within the country and the world.

Major Wine Variety’s

You may find more “Bang for the Buck” by purchasing Spanish wine because you will not be paying the higher price of “International varieties” varieties such as Cab & Chard. International variety’s come with a higher price tag due to popularity and the cost of developing and planting new vineyards. There is also the cost of tying up dollars in the amount of time needed to mature vines before they can harvest grapes.

What you will experience, are unique wines that have been cultivated for centuries, developing their own unique and interesting flavor profiles. The fact that these vineyards are only managed and not newly planted, equates to lower cost with incredible taste. The Spanish wine industry has only recently begun to show any interest in varietal-led winemaking and marketing. Several hundred varieties are grown & used in Spanish wine production, but the vast majority of wine is made from an insignificant sum of these varietals.

The major red varieties are Tempranillo, Garnacha and Monastrell also known in France as Mourvedre. Major white wines are Airen, Macabeo, Palomino and Albarino.  Accounting for both quality and quantity of juice turned into wine is the famous Tempranillo grape from Rioja & Toro. Where the Tinto Fino is the most prominent grape of Ribera del Duero. Garnacha is valued for its jammy fruit character and its ability to produce wines high in alcohol. It is put to good use in the deeply-colored rosés of Navarra, but perhaps shows best when blended with the more-structured, intense flavored Monastrell.

The most widely planted variety in all of Spain to much surprise is the little-known Airen grape. This is a high-yielding white variety that is drought resistance making it popular among growers. Many will never see this varietal because it’s typically used as a blending grape or used in the making of local brandy. Macabeo or Viura as it is known in Rioja is a main variety in both still wines and sparkling Cava. Palomino is sometimes seen as a stand-alone table wine but is more commonly and almost exclusively used in the production of Sherry. Albarino is predominately found in the north-west, and owes its admiration to the success of its most noted wine style, Rias Baixas.

‘International’ varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc are becoming more widespread in Spain, and their plantings are increasing in many regions. There are also regional specialties, but many of them are not found or are hard to find in the states due to a lack of focus in Spanish wines.

Over the past 20 years, Spain’s wine industry has recognized the need for improved if not state-of-the-art technologies. The result has been a momentous increase in quality and reliability year after year. Producers are adapting to the demands of the international wine market, giving way to innovation and offering both quality and value for the money. This modernization in vineyard and winery has directed a much improved national wine-classification system as well.

Labeling Laws

Bottles often will be labeled by the amount or lack of aging time that the wine has undergone before it is released to the public for sale. When a label designates the term vino joven or sin crianza, this literally translates as:” Young Wine”. These wines have seen very little or no time at all inside wood barrels or tank ageing. Many of these wines are meant for current consumption often within a year of their release. Some benefit from spending time in the bottle, developing what is known as “Bottle Character”. Vendimia or Cosecha may be seen on a label, this is literally the “Harvest or Vintage”, a minimum of 85% of the grapes must have been harvested within the year stated on the label. The most common aging designations on Spanish wine labels are Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva and are explained as below.

Wine Aging

Spanish Red Wine	Minimum Barrel /Tank Age	Minimum Bottle Age	Total Years Aged before release
Joven	0 – 6 months	0	0
Crianza	6 months – 1 Year	1 Year	2 Years
Reserva	1 Year	2 Years	3 Years
Grand Reserva	18 months – 2 Years	3 Years	5 Years

 

Spanish White / Rose Wine	Minimum Barrel /Tank Age	Minimum Bottle Age	Total Years Aged before release
Joven	0 – 6 months	0	0
Crianza	6 months – 1 Year	6 months	1 Years
Reserva	6 months	1.5 Years	2 Years
Grand Reserva	6 months	3.5 Years	4 Years

I recommend that you go to your neighborhood 21^st Amendment and pick up a bottle from each of these fantastic regions to try with your friends. In the quest to satisfy your thirst for wine knowledge you might discover the distinctive styles and variation among the 7 major wine growing provinces of Spain. Introduce your friends to a new wine worthy of time & conversation.