Wine Regions, Spanish Wines and the Wine Makers, buy your spanish wines online.

Wine Regions

Since the early practice of wine making in Spain, there have been many regions devoting time and money to producing wines. I more recent times, the focus has moved from quantity to quality. Spain's wines took a back seat when Franco was in power and only since his death in 1975 has Spain pumped money in new equipment to aid the production of great quality wines.

Spain has many great wine producing regions and many of these have the D.O. (Denominacion de Origen) label. We will cover some of the wine regions in the next few paragraphs.

Rias Baixas D.O.

Rias Baixas D.O. Is the heart of the Albariño wine (produced with the Albariño grape) in Galicia and although there are many Albariño wines to choose from, not all are the same in terms of quality. Galicia is Celtic and very different to what people know as Spain with hot summers and dry conditions. Galician traditional music instruments include bagpipes and hand held drums. The food is typically seafood (shellfish) and is known to have some of the best seafood in the world. This food is greatly complemented by the Albariño wine which many people drink with their meals. The capital is Santiago de Compostela which is globally famous for the pilgrims walk to the Cathedral where St James is rumoured to be buried.

Rioja

Rioja is possibly the most famous wine producing region outside of Spain and has a long history of producing great wines. The Rioja region is divided into 3 parts: Rioja Alavesa which is north of the river. Rioja alta south of the river and Rioja baja which is also south of the river. In Rioja alta, the temperatures are slightly hotter and produce a deeper, richer thick skinned grape which make slightly richer reds. Rioja baja along producing tempranillo based reds focuses much on the Garnacha grape which rely on hot ripening periods and flourishes in central and eastern Spain. In Rioja Alavesa, the grapes have a thinner skin which produces lighter wines.

Ribera del Duero

Ribera del Duero is one of the greatest wine producing regions of Spain and one such factor contributing to this is the altitude of the region. Vineyards may be planted at heights of over 800 metres and in summer are under intense heat of up to 40C+ and at night the temperature drops by over 20C and there is danger of night frost in this region.
The outcome however is amazing and the wines here are full bodied and fruity with intense rich flavours. These wine go well with the local food of game, lamb suckling pig and other local meat dishes.

Cigales

Cigales is located just northwest of Ribera Del Duero region and produces wines that can be compared to those of Ribera Del Duero reds. One little known fact was the Cigales region was more famous for its Rose wines than its reds and still produces some of Spain's best Rose wines. The region has similar climate to Ribera del Duero.

Bierzo

Bierzo is a wine region producing wines made from the mencia grape. The wine regions covers two areas in northwest Spain.Galicia to the northwest and Castilla Leon region.

Requena

The D.O. Utiel-Requena is in the interior of the province of Valencia, 70 km from the Mediterranean Sea and at an altitude of between 698 m to 900 m at its greatest elevation.

The soils and the climate - influenced by the continent - make Utiel-Requena wines something special, above all the reds and rosés made from the red Bobal variety which is almost unique in the world to this region. Its surface area of almost 40,000 hectares makes it the most extensive and homogeneous wine-growing area in the Valencian Community.
The region is comprised of nine municipalities: Caudete de las Fuentes, Camporrobles, Fuenterrobles, Requena, Siete Aguas, Sinarcas, Utiel, Venta del Moro and Villargordo del Cabriel.
Some seven thousand families and more than a hundred Bodegas make their living from wine production in the D.O. Utiel-Requena making it the principle force behind the region's economy.

Jumilla

The Jumilla wine-growing region encompasses a large area in the province of Murcia and Albacete in south-eastern Spain. It is a rugged country, where the vineyards grow on a high plateau surrounded by mountains.
Grapes have been the principal crop here for more than two thousand years. In this land, the Monastrell grape has found the ideal environment for growth. The limey soil, the hard climate (with temperatures of up to 100 degrees Fahrenheit in summer, plunging to below freezing in winter), the scarce rainfall (less than 12 inches a year)... all these conditions enable the Monastrell grape to develop its colour and flavour to the fullest.