If you are looking for a good reason to visit Spain, here it is: wine. This country is all wine, hovering wines everywhere.
In fact, with over a million hectares under grape puts Spain in the lead ranking wine producer countries. Spain accounts for nearly one-third of all European wines, followed by France and Italy. An impressive amount of vineyards, with a yearly production of about forty million hectometers. Still French and Italian wine producers outnumber the Spanish winemakers regarding the productivity of their vineyards.
Obviously wine has a significant economic importance for Spain. It covers around 2% of all agricultural yield territory. And it is also a very dynamic sector in terms of number of wineries. But in the end, what matters is not only the quantity but also the quality of what we finally get into our wine glass. And you have plenty to choose from, with 64 wine appellations of origin scattered throughout the territory. In addition there are 15 wine estates classified as "Vino de Pago" , which applies to individual vineyards with international reputation. And lots of other appellations of origins for table wines.
These regions produce "vinos de la tierra", the Spanish equivalent to the French "vin du pays".These regions produce wines with appellation of origin, which is the protected regulatory classification for wines from certain regions.
Three thousand years of history
Spain 's wine identity is based on historical, cultural, and geographic and climate premises. The old Phoenicians introduced viticulture in the Iberian Peninsula, about three thousand years ago. The Romans, the antique conquerors and wine lovers, consolidated a business that was booming in the Mediterranean since the time of the Greeks. After the long period of Muslim rule from 7th to 14th century the Christians of the peninsula recovered no only the whole territory but also the healthy habit of drinking wine. Although it were the monks of the middle ages who, using that metaphor of presenting wine as the blood of Christ, strengthened production and thereby boosted the emergence of the various wine regions.
During the 19the century the the disastrous phylloxera destroyed most of Europe's vineyards. This paradoxically favored Spain, as this led to the arrival of many French winemakers who crossed the Pyrenees in search of bug-free vineyards. So these French introduced new wine-making techniques and some of their best grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon in Spain.
The 20th century brought the disaster of civil war, during which the Spanish vineyard was abandoned to its fate. With the Second World War the European market slumped. But since the 70s the Spanish wine has recovered, experiencing tremendous growth and profound changes. Thus, new generations of winemakers have managed to link the traditional values with new technologies, leading to a vast repertoire of new wines that today enthusiast wine lovers worldwide.
A vineyard in every corner
The rich diversity of Spanish wines is not an arbitrary matter. Wine has a tremendous capacity to adapt to all types of terrains and climates from arid soils of humid regions south to north, passing through the extreme rigors of the Castilian plateau, with its scorching sun glasses frigid nights. Also in Spain there is a long catalog of native grapes like the whites Pedro Ximenez, Albariño and Muscat, Tempranillo and the red onrs Tempranillo, Monastrell, Garnacha and Mencia serve to enhance that diversity. The outcome of these native grapes and "imported" grapes from France or even Germany is an impressive amount of different wines style and profiles for all tastes: modern, classic, light, intense, fresh ... name it and taste it. As we said, wine is a good reason to live in Spain . In any case a tour is imposed for every corner of the Spanish vineyard to taste its very own and special flavors. And there is almost no corner where there does not grow a vineyard.
List of spanish wine regions and labels of origin
Andalusian wines
Spanish wines with appellations of origin like DO, Vino de Pago or Vino de Calidad in Andalusia
Wines that are "Vin du pays" or "Vino de la Tierra" in Andalusia
Jerez-Xeres-Sherry
Condado de Huelva
Málaga
Jerez-Xérès-Sherry from Málaga
Manzanilla from Sanlúcar de Barrameda
Manzanilla from Sanlúcar de Barrameda
Montilla-Moriles
Montilla-Moriles
Sierras de Málaga
Sierras de Málaga
Vino Naranja from Condado de Huelva (Orange Wine)
Granada
Lebrija
Wines of Aragon
Wines with appellations of origin
Vino de la Tierra
Calatayud
Bajo Aragón
Campo de Borja
Ribera del Gállego-Cinco Villas
Cariñena
Valdejalón
Somontano
Valle del Cinca
Cava
Ribera del Jiloca
Ribera del Queiles
Viñedos de España
Wines from Asturias
Wines with appellation of origin
Cangas
Wines from the Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Ibiza)
Wines with appellations of origin
Vino de la Tierra
Binissalem
Ibiza
Pla i Llevant
Illes Balears
Isla de Menorca
Serra de Tramuntana-Costa Nord
Formentera
Mallorca
Viñedos de España
Wines from Canary Islands
Wines with appellation of origin
"Vino de la Tierra"
Abona, La Gomera, Gran Canaria, El Hierro, La Palma, Lanzarote, Tacoronte-Acentejo, Valle de Güímar, Valle de La Orotava, Ycoden-Daute-Isora,
Viñedos de España
Wines from Cantabria
Spanish wines with appellations of origin in Cantabria
"Vino de la Tierra" in Cantabria
Costa de Cantabria, Liébana
Wines from Castilla-La Mancha
Spanish wines with appellation of origin in Castilla-La Mancha
"Vino de la Tierra" in Castilla-La Mancha
Almansa, Campo de la Guardia, Dehesa del Carrizal, Casa del Blanco, Dominio de Valdepusa, Finca Élez, Pago Florentino, Guijoso, La Mancha, Manchuela, Méntrida, Mondéjar, Pago Calzadilla, Ribera del Júcar, Valdepeñas, Jumilla, Uclés
Castilla, Gálvez, Pozohondo, Sierra de Alcaraz, Viñedos de España
Castilla y León
Spanish wines with appellations of origin lin Castilla y León
"Vino de la Tierra" in Castilla y León
Arlanza, Arribes, Bierzo, Cigales, Ribera del Duero, Rioja, Rueda, Sierra de Salamanca, Tierra de León, Tierra del Vino de Zamora, Toro, Valles de Benavente, Valtiendas, Cava
Castilla y León
Wines from Catalonia
Spanish wines with appellation of origin in Catalonia
"Vino de la Tierra" in Catalonia
Alella, Ampurdán, Cataluña, Conca de Barberá, Costers del Segre, Montsant, Penedés, Pla de Bages, Priorat, Tarragona, Terra Alta, Cava
Viñedos de España
Wines from Extremadura
Spanish wines with appellation of origin in Extremadura
"Vino de la Tierra" in Extremadura
Ribera del Guadiana, Cava
Extremadura, Viñedos de España
Wines from Galicia
Spanish wines with appellation of origin in Galicia
