SPAIN
Spain is the world's largest wine producer. Almost 5,000 bodegas (wineries) and bottling plants produce from more than 250 varieties of wines in various styles and qualities.
Although Spain is more commonly known as red wine country, 50% of the area is planted with white varieties.
The quality system for Spanish wines:
- Vino de Mesa, a simple table wine
- Vino de la Tierra (Vdit), wine country, corresponds to a French vin de pays
- D.O. (Denomination of origin); controlled designation of origin. Rioja, Priorat, Ribera del Duero may bear the designation DOCa (denomination of origin)
Within the production areas there are following quality levels:
- Cosecha, wines that have not spent the necessary maturity in oak barrels and/or bottle
- Vino joven, wine without wood barrel aging
- Semi Crianza Crianza or Crianza Corta, 'unofficial name for wines that have been stored for some months in oak barrels, but not long enough to be defined as 'Crianza'.
- Crianza wine barrel storage with at least 1 year and 12 to 18 months in bottle. In Navarre, Rioja, Ribera del Duero and Penedes 12 months of barrel aging are required.
- Reserva, red wine with at least 1 year in barrel aging and 2 years of bottle aging. White wine at the minimum 6 months barrel and 1.5 years of aging in bottle.
- Gran Reserve, wine with at least 2 years barrel aging and 3 years in bottle. White wine with at least 6 months in barel and 3.5 years of aging in bottle.
Vineyard area: 1.2 million ha
Wine production / year: 35 million hectoliters
More sub catagories:
