Category: D.O.

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D.O.Ca. Rioja

D.O.Ca. Rioja

 

Spain is one of the most important wine making countries in the world. There are vineyards all around the country, but some of the best lie in the north of Spain, which is where the Great RIOJA is located. Located at the north-central Spain the Rioja (named after the River Oja, in Spanish Rio Oja) region has been making wine since the 2nd century BC.

This region got a real boom in the 1860s when Bordeaux experienced an infestation by a pest called phylloxera, which devastated vineyards and wiped out crops. For France was a nightmare but for Spain one of the most amazing dreams in terms of wine.

Philoxera (a pest coming from America) devastated France Vineyards around 1860.

Some of the best winemakers moved from Bordeaux to Rioja and started making incredible Rioja wines using the French style. After this boom the Rioja’s wine quality improved considerable and became Spain’s crown jewel of wine, reaching an international recognition and a publicity that was well deserved.

Rioja’s Sub-Regions

Rioja is divided in 3 sub-regions:

  • Rioja Alta,
  • Rioja Alavesa, and
  • Rioja Baja.

This regions are easy to identify according to the production and weather in each region. In Rioja Alta the weather is cooler with higher altitudes producing full body wines with lots of great fruit. In the other hand, Rioja Alavesa has more sun incidence with high altitudes producing wines with firm tannins and lots of acid. Finally Rioja Baja has a  desert-like weather with lower altitudes and produces very alcoholic wines.

Rioja’s grapes

Most of all Rioja red wines are a blend of the Tempranillo, Garnacha (internationally known as Grenache thanks to France), Graciano, Mazuelo and Maturana Tina grapes. Other reds are grown in the Region but are not accepted by the DO Regulator Council, so the wines using different grapes are not labeled as Rioja’s.

 

White Riojas taste a little like Sauvignon Blanc and are made mostly of the native Viura grape but Malvasía, Garnacha Blanca and Tempranillo Blanco are also accepted. The Rosados (pink) are mostly made from Tempranillo and Garnacha.

Rioja’s Classification

In Rioja there is an internal classification of the wine based in how long the wine has been matured in oak and aged in the bottle. There’s a proportional relationship between age and price, so if you’re going shopping for Rioja this is what you must know:

 

  • Joven, Selección o Roble = no oak age or less than a year of oak aging. This wines are more fruity and usually cheaper, but are also really good as the followed the same Rioja standards during the elaboration.
  • Crianza = at least 1 year matured in oak barrels and at least 1 year aged in a bottle.
  • Reserva = at least 1 year matured  in oak barrels and another 2 years aged in a bottle before release.
  • Gran Reserva = at least 2 years matured in oak and 3 years more aged in the bottle. This wines are usually mad in great vintage years, so expect a higher price and a great quality if you find one of these as one of your options.

 

 

Thanks to the great tradition, extensive work, standards of quality, rules of classification and the great people behind the Rioja wineries, this region has the highest distinction in Spain and is not only a DO (Denominación de Origen), is awarded with the highest DO level in Spain and is known as a DOCa (Denominación de Origen Calificada or Qualified Denomination of Origen). Only Rioja and Priorat are under this classification, so when you get a Rioja you should expect to get a great wine.

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D.O. Rueda

Denomination of Origin Rueda

Maybe if you ask to any Spaniard, could you recommend me a good Verdelho from Spain?, he’ll surely recommend you any wine from  the region of Rueda. And maybe this association is because of the wine history that this Region has. There are records on the production of wine in this Region since medieval times in old Spanish records from more than 9 centuries ago.

This Designation of Origen is the first and oldest DO created in “Castilla y Leon”, approved by the Ministry of Agriculture on 12 January 1980. The production zone covered by this DO is made up of 72 towns and villages, 53 of which are located in the south of the province of Valladolid, 17 to the west of Segovia and four north of Ávila.

The Grapes produced under this Designation of Origin (DO) are grown between 700 and 800 meters above sea level, on flat and high ground. Winters are cold and long and springs are short with late frost while summers are hot and dry.

Blanco Nieva DO

It is in the center of the Duero River’s basin and comprises a plateau with smooth relief and slopes exposed to winds from the Atlantic. The soil is grey-brown, rich in calcium and magnesium, easy to till and stony, well ventilated and well drained.

Blanco Nieva DO

The region is famous for the Verdelho production, but is not the only grape that could be found within this DO. The white grapes allowed under this DO are:

  • Verdelho
  • Sauvignon Blanc
  • Viura
  • Palomino Fino

It is also possible to find red varieties like:

  • Tempranillo
  • Cabernet Sauvignon
  • Merlot
  • Grenache

A good candidate to taste what Rueda has to offer is the delicate Blanco Nieva, from the municipality of Nieva at the northwest of the town of Segovia. The location of the vineyards in Nieva belongs to the 12th century, when the commercialisation of the wines started with the peak of Los Cartujos monastery. Viñedos de Nieva is a modern company was founded in 1989 as a project trying to revive the vine-growing tradition that existed in this region since memorial times. After 20 years working step by step, in 2009, Bodegas MARTÚE joined this company to enforce the image of this winery and add their experience to increase even more the quality of this wines.

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D.O. Valdeorras

Valdeorras: The “Valley of Gold”

Valdeorras is a Spanish Denominación de Origen (DO) (Denominación de Orixe in Galician) for wines located on the banks of the river Sil in the south of the province of Ourense, (Galicia, Spain).

Valdeorras, whose name means “Valley of Gold”, may have been the first grape growing and wine producing region in Galicia. After the ancient Romans had finished mining the area for gold, they planted vines and the wines produced were mentioned in several inscriptions in Latin.

During the Middle Ages the vineyards were taken over and managed by the religious orders. After a centuries long period of decline, the 19th century saw the area take off again. In the 20th century, in the 1970s experiments were conducted to reintroduce the native Godello grape variety.

The area acquired its official DO status in 1945. At DO Valdeorras they explain that the project researched the most appropriate rootstocks and training methods and addressed the grape’s tendency to mature very rapidly due to serious sunshine exposure in autumn. Apparently hillside plantations had given excellent wines from way back in antiquity, so they also looked into what soils and locations could be best. Luckily Galicia happens to have some of the finest slate in Europe. But in all not more than 1,000 square meters (1,200 sq. yards) of vineyard had survived. The surviving Godello vines were around 60 years old, grafted onto a hybrid of Vitis vinifera and rupestris. Clonal selection among these not more than 200 original stocks has been subsequently improved, yet without narrowing it too tightly to preserve polyclonal vineyards.

These pioneers were also some of the first in Spain to use stainless steel, but confessedly the first new Godello’s were not consistent. The lack of immediate varietal aroma slowed its appeal on the international market. Yet thanks to careful work in vineyards and total control of rising maturity at harvest, Godello wines now show an attractive nose and a fleshy, rounded palate. The good thing about Godello is that it allows terroir to shine through, but possible odd smells need to be avoided. This is why a selection table at harvest time is essential.

River Sil Valdeorras
River Sil at Valdeorras

The vineyards of the Valdeorras DO are on the banks of the river Sil, which flows westwards from Castile and León to the province of Ourense. In general the landscape is flat or gently rolling.

As most of the vineyards are on the river Sil valley floor, the soils are alluvial and quite fertile, with good moisture retaining properties.

The vines are planted at a height of between 240 m and 320 m above sea level.

The climate in Valdeorras is a combination of Atlantic, continental and a specific micro-climate in the Sil valley. These factors ensure that the vines receive enough sunlight and heat during the short summer. Rainfall is high, between 850 mm and 1,000 mm per year. Temperatures can drop to below zero during the winter.

In addition to this, there are also risks of late frosts and hails in spring, excessive heat in summer, and violent storms caused by the mixture of the sea breezes and the dry air of the Castilian plain.

The Recommended white grapes are Godello and Dona Branca; also authorised is Palomino Fino.

The Recommended red grapes are Mencia, Merenzao, Sousón, Brancellao; also authorised are Grenache Tintorera (Alicante Bouschet), Gran Negro, Tempranillo and Negreda.