DOs Flashcards
Rias Biaxas
Galicia
DO
1988
99% BLANCO!!
4021 - small
ALBARINO, Treixadura, Loureira + Caino Blanco
Mino river
5 subzones -
Val de Salnes - biggest, oldest, flattest wettest, birthplace Albarino >70% A + L + T + Cano Blanco
Condo de Tea - inland, warmest >70% A + Treix
O Rosal - Blends >70% A + L
Soutomaior - only Albarino
Ribeira do Ulla - newest > 70% A+L+T + CN
Ribeira Sacra
Galicia DO 1996 94% Tinto 1241 - Small MENCIA - + Garnacha and Godello Steep Mino riverbank SLATE Ribiera Sacra Summum >85% pref, 60% Mencia Sacred riverbank 5 subzones inc Amandii = spicy roman wine
Ribeiro
Galicia DO Yes 1932 OLDEST 90% Blanco 2220 TREIXADURA (vinho verde links) + mix of many others RiverMino Granite Extreme temps Sweet wines in 18c= Tostado de Ribiera Colleitieros =115 of them
Valdeorras
Galicia DO 1945 Mixed - Blanco 1182 Mencia and GODELLO Sil river Slate Valdeorras Castas Nobles >85% Preferred Valley of Gold 8 subregions
Txakoli of Alava
Pais Vasco DO 2001 Blanco 95 One of Spain's smallest DOs Hondarribi Zuri Limestone Smallest and Driest DO in Region 5 subregions
Txakoli of Bizkaia
Pais Vasco Biscay DO 1994 Blanco 403 Hondarribi Zuri Clay loam Foehn Txakoli winemakers assocn
Txakoli of Geratria
Pais Vasco DO 1989 =First Blanco 427 Hondarribi Zuri Coastal Parral Largest, Warmest and wettest
Bierzo
Castilla y Leon DO 1989 Tinto 2854 Mencia = NATIVE and Godello Slopes Granite/Limestone
Cigales
Castilla y Leon DO 1991 64% ROSADOS 1948 Tempranillo+Garnacha + Verdejo Duero Sand + Limestone Clarete - deep dark rose Majuelos
Ribeiro del Duero
Castilla y Leon DO 1980 Tinto 22395 Tinto Fino Duero Varied Vega Sicilia=Don Eloy Lecando y Chaves 1970s=Alejandro Ferndandez Some of highest vienyards in Spain No whites allowed in DO - but can use white grape Albillo Mayor Pink, Maroon, Brown and Gold aging labels
Rueda
Castilla y Leon DO Yes 1932 Oldest DO in Region Blanco 14753 VERDEJO Duero Gravel stone Rancio = Dorado oxidatively aged Marques de Riscal Palomino Fino no longer authorised Coloured labels
Toro
Castilla y Leon DO 1987 Tinto 5555 Tinta de Toro (Tempranillo) Sand and clay Wine taken by Columbus High elevation Weighty tannic wines Lowest rainfall in CyL
Rioja
La Rioja Yes DOCa Yes 1991 Tinto 115000 Tempranillo (+Garnacha) Ebro Cal clay, ferr clay and alluvium 3 subzones Special aging Bottle numbers and Trustseal
Navarra
Navarra DO 1933 Tinto + Rosado 10774 Garnacha Pyrenean foothills Marl, loam, clay Rose and sweet white 1933 Cierzo 5 subzones Tierra Estella= Valdizarbe- diverse grapes Baja Montana=Rosado Ribeira Alta=Largest Ribeira Baja=lowest and warmest
Calatayud
Aragon DO 1989 Tinto 3200 Garnacha High foothills Sistema Iberico Slate, clay sand Calatayud Superiore =low yielding, 50yr old vines Vinas Viejas co-ops
Campo de Borja
Aragon DO 1980 Tinto 6242 Garnacha Mtns and Ebro Limestone, clay V old vines- some of oldest in Spain Co-ops 3 subzones - Alta, Media, Baja
Cariñena
Aragon DO Yes 1932 Historical Tinto 13768 Garnacha Ebro valley Limestone clay Anejo Not much carinena
Somontano
Aragon DO 1984 Tinto+ 3931 International Pyrenean foothills Limestone clay Bdx influence Wet
Cataluna
Cataluna DO 1999 Mixed 4 2431 Various - Garnacha red and white Limestone clay Covers all region Blends
Cava
Cataluna Yes DO 1986 Espumoso 33110 Xarello, Macabeo, Parallada Cava de Paraje Calificado Limestone clay Also La Rioja, Valencia, Aragon, Navarra, Extredamura, Pais Vasco CORPINNAT
Empdora
Cataluna DO 1975 Mixed - Tinto 1756 Garnacha , Lledoner, Samso ++ Terraces, 2 sections Alluvium slate Garnacha del Empdora T ramontana
Montsant
Cataluna DO 2002 Tinto 1844 Garnacha, Samso Carignan Encircles Priorat Panal, Saulo, Llicorella 6 subzones Zoning project
Penendes
Cataluna DO Yes 1960 Mixed- Blanco 16637 Xarello, Macabeo, Parallada Series of steps from Med Limestone clay Classic Penedes - sparkling organic 2014 3 subzones - Superiore, Central, Maritime
Priorat
Cataluna DOQ Yes 2009 Tinto 1972 Blends: Garnacha, Samso, Mazuelo + Bdx Mtn ranges, Ebro Costers Llicorella 5 rungs of quality - Names of the Land 1=DOQ Priorat 2=Vi de Vila 3=Vi de Partage 4=Vinya Classificada 5=Gran Vinya Classificada Cierzo Vinyas Velles Scala Dei
Terra Alta
Cataluna DO 1982 Tinto 6066 Garnacha - inc peluda High in SW Limestone clay Sweet fortified Co-ops Quality wines numbered
Alicante
Valencia DO Yes 1957 Mixed- Tinto 10379 Monastrell Coastal plain Limestone and clay Fondillon
Utiel-Requena
Valencia DO Yes 1957 Tinto 34510 Bobal West Valencia Limestone Doble pasta Some DO Valencia Leveche
Bullas
Murcia DO 1994 Tinto 1811 Monastrell High, 2 areas Limestone chalk
Jumilla
Murcia Yes DO 1966 Tinto 18682 Monastrell N Murcia Limestone Shared with CLM, 40%land, 70% prodn
Yecla
Murcia DO 1975 Tinto 4830 Monastrell Plain Limestone 95% exported La Purisma co-op
La Mancha
Castille La Mancha DO Yes 1932 Tinto 165470 Airen and Tempranillo Limestone Largest DO in Spain and world
Manchuela
Castille La Mancha DO 2000 Tinto 6709 Bobal Eastern border Limestone Doble pasta Split from La Mancha
Valdepenas
Castille La Mancha DO Yes 1932 Tinto 21832 Airen and Tempranillo South CLM Limestone Aloque Valley of stones Tempranillo=Cencibel
Vinos de Madrid
Madrid DO 1990 Tinto 8860 Malvar+Albillo and Tinto Fino South nr Tajo river Granite Sobremadre 4 subzones Terraces
Ribera del Guardiana
Extremadura DO 1999 Tinto 35797 Tempranillo and Caytana Blanca+ Pardina River Guardiana Clay limestone 6 subzones 9% of Spain's plantings -2nd highest
Jerez
Andalucia DO Yes 1933 Generoso 6989 Palomino Fino Albarizia
Manzanilla-Sanlucar
Andalucia DO Yes 1964 Generoso Palomino Fino Albarizia joint CR with sherry
Malaga
Andalucia DO Yes 1933 Dolce 996 PX and Moscatel Limestone Parajete
Mantilla-Morilles
Andalucia DO 1945 Generoso 5025 PX Cordoba Albero Sweet PX 2 rivers, 17 towns
Binassalem
Balearics DO 1990 Tinto 605 MantoNegro and Presnal Blanc/Moll Ft of Mtns Limestone
Pla I Llevant
Balearics DO 1999 Mixed 439 Callet and Presnal Blanc/Moll Plain Limestone Embat
Islas Canarias
Islas Canarias
DO 2011
Blanco 493
Marmajuelo+Doradillo and Castellan Negra
Lanzarote
Islas Canarias DO 1993 Blanco 1849 Malvasia Volcanica Volcano Lapilli
Tacoronte-Acentejo
Islas Canarias DO 1992 Tinto 1017 Listan Negro Tenerife Volcanic
Valle de la Orotava
Islas Canarias DO 1996 Tinto 329 Listan Negro Tenerife Volcanic
Ycoden-Daute-Isora
Islas Canarias DO 1996 Blanco 161 Listan Blanco Tenerife- Mt Tiede Volcanic Steep and treacherous vineyards
Rias Baixas - OCW
Rías Baixas, the leading do wine zone in galicia, north west Spain (see map under spain), producing some of the country’s most sought-after dry white wines. Between 1987 and 2012 the DO’s vineyard area grew from 237 ha/570 acres to 4,050 ha/9,700 acres with the number of wineries rising from 14 to 177. Named after the flooded coastal valleys, or rías, that penetrate up to 30 km/19 miles inland, the zone’s reputation is based on the white albariño grape. Wines were exported to northern Europe in the 16th and 17th centuries but, after the ravages of phylloxera, many of the traditional vine varieties were abandoned, and by the 1900s the region’s vineyards were largely planted with high-yielding hybrids and by Jerez’s palomino, producing poor-quality wine. The revival began in the late 1970s, when growers were encouraged to replant native vine varieties and producers were given incentives to invest in modern winemaking equipment. The metamorphosis gathered pace with the application of eu funds following Spain’s accession to the EU in 1986.
Rías Baixas has five separate subzones, all within the province of Pontevedra. Many of the purest Albariño wines come from Val do Salnés zone centred on the town of Cambados on the west coast. The two further subzones, O Rosal and Condado do Tea, are on the northern slopes of the river Miño facing the vinho verde region in Portugal on the opposite bank. A fourth, small subzone, Soutomaior, was admitted in the late 1990s, to be joined later by Ribeira do Ulla in the far north. All five zones share the same granite-based subsoils and relatively cool, damp, maritime climate. The Atlantic influence is strongest in Val do Salnés, where annual rainfall averages 1,300 mm/50 in. Vines were traditionally cultivated on pergolas (see tendone) to protect grapes from the constant threat of fungal diseases, although modern vineyards are planted on a more practical local variant of the geneva double curtain vine-training system.
Twelve different vine varieties are officially permitted in Rías Baixas although Albariño accounts for 90% of the vineyard area. Other white grapes which may be blended with Albariño according to local regulations include caiño blanco, as well as treixadura, and Loureira (see loureiro; locally known as Marqués), both of which are found in the Vinho Verde region. (torrontés and godello are also permitted.) On its own, Albariño produces a fragrant, intensely fruity, dry white wine with a natural minimum alcohol often above 12%. Yields used to be low, which made the wines expensive, but abusive yield increases began to occur in the 1990s, sometimes aggravated by over-reliance on selected, aroma-enhancing yeasts. There have been experiments with oak. The six permitted red grapes, including mencía, espadeiro, and Caiño Tinto, were planted on a total area of just 190 ha/455 acres in 2012
Ribiera Sacra -OCW
Ribeira Sacra, growing Spanish do, created in 1996. It is the only galician region specializing in red wines, from the mencía grape, and some less well-known local varieties, together with some whites from Godello and Albariño.
Ribeiro -OCW
Ribeiro — means ‘river bank’ or ‘riverside’ in the Galician language and is the name of a red and white wine do zone in galicia, north west Spain (see map under spain). Ribeiro spans the valleys of the river Miño and its tributaries and Arnoia downstream from Orense. In the 16th and 17th centuries wines from Ribeiro were exported as far afield as Italy and England but they disappeared from international markets until recently. phylloxera put paid to the region’s prosperity at the end of the 19th century. As in rías baixas, for example, farmers, seeking a quick return to profit, replanted their holdings with the sherry grape palomino. Over recent years, growers have been encouraged to uproot this productive but unsuitable variety in favour of treixadura, torrontés, Lado, and other indigenous varieties which perform well in the damp maritime climate of north west Iberia and can be made into aromatic, crisp white wines. But it is the red wine explosion that has been notable this century, with the recovery and discovery of local Brancellao (alvarelhão), Caiño Redondo, Carabuñeira (Portugal’s Touriga Nacional), and Ferrón varieties, and the rediscovery of the better vineyards planted to the long-reviled, post-phylloxeric Garnacha Tintorera (alicante bouschet). With help from eu funds, wineries have been updated and the traditional, labour-intensive pergolas (see tendone) are being replaced by lower vine-training systems.
Valdeorras - OCW
asternmost wine zone in galicia in north-west Spain (see map under spain). Steeply terraced vineyards are planted predominantly with inappropriate but productive vine varieties such as Garnacha Tintorera (alicante bouschet) and the white palomino. The indigenous white godello, which had all but disappeared from Galicia in the wake of phylloxera, is being aggressively replanted. This moderately productive variety is susceptible to disease, but Valdeorras is protected from the Atlantic by mountains immediately to the west. If carefully vinified, it can produce an aromatic wine with an alcoholic strength of 12 to 13%. In the late 1990s, some of Spain’s most acclaimed barrel-fermented whites were Godello wines from Valdeorras made by the Guitián family, who pioneered this style, now artfully practised by the likes of Rafael Palacios and Valdesil. The mencía grape, which makes fruity reds, is similarly respected by a new wave of producers in Valdeorras.
Pais Vasco - OCW
The Basque country (País Vasco in Castilian, Euskadi in Basque) is the most ferociously independent of all Spain’s 17 autonomous regions. This densely populated, heavily industrialized strip of country facing the Bay of Biscay is not normally associated with wine, even though the important rioja region stretches north of the River Ebro into the Basque province of Alava where the Rioja Alavesa subregion is located—The three wholly Basque dos are the tiny region of Getariako txakolina on the coast 25 km/15 miles west of San Sebastián, the smaller Bizkaiko Txakolina around Bilbao, and the newest one, Arabako Txakolina.
Bierzo - OCW
Bierzo, increasingly fashionable small do region in north west Spain (see map under spain) which administratively forms part of castilla y león. However, the River Sil, which bisects it, is a tributary of the Miño (Minho in Portugal) and the wines have more in common with those of galicia than those of the douro 140 km/88 miles to the south. Sheltered from the climatic excesses of the Atlantic and the central plateau, Bierzo shows promise as a wine region. The mencía grape is capable of producing balanced, fruity red wines in well-drained soils on the slate and granite of this part of Spain.
In the late 1990s, a group of small, mostly young growers reproduced in Bierzo the same ‘miracle’ which had happened in Priorat one decade earlier—they resurrected a moribund wine region. One of the protagonists, Álvaro Palacios, was indeed one of the Priorat pioneers as well. With his nephew Ricardo Pérez Palacios, he reclaimed small, old vineyards on slate slopes and produced wines with no resemblance to the light quaffable reds traditionally produced from fertile valley vineyards.
Cigales - OCW
small wine zone in northern Spain, north of Valladolid in castilla y león (see map under spain), higher and cooler than toro, with impressive average vine age. This do has traditionally produced dry rosé wines made from Tinto del Pais (tempranillo) and some garnacha grapes, but an increasing number of dry reds show real potential and, so far, value.
Ribeiro del Duero - OCW
important wine zone in castilla y león in north-central Spain that challenged rioja as the leading red wine-producing region in Iberia towards the end of the 20th century when it grew substantially. By 2012 it had a total of 21,500 ha/51,500 acres of vineyard, a third as much as Rioja. Ribera del Duero spans the upper valley of the River Duero (known as douro in Portugal), starting some 30 km/18 miles east of the city of Valladolid (see map under spain). Although Bodegas vega sicilia on the western margin of the denomination has been producing one of Spain’s finest wines since the mid 19th century, the region was awarded do status only in 1982. Since then more than 200 private estates have emerged.
Vega Sicilia, concentrated and long-lived red wine that is Spain’s undisputed equivalent of a first growth, made on a single property now incorporated into the ribera del duero denomination. The wine was being made long before the present do region took shape in the 1980s. This 1,000-ha/2,500-acre farm either side of the main road east of Valladolid has been making wine in its present form since 1864 when Eloy Lacanda y Chaves planted vines from Bordeaux alongside Tinto Fino, also known as Tinta del País (a local strain of tempranillo). T
The more than 200 ha/500 acres of vineyard on limestone soils overlooking the River Duero (douro in Portugal) are planted mainly with Tinto Fino but cabernet sauvignon, merlot, and a little malbec together make up about 20% of the total production. A tiny quantity of old-vine white albillo remains.
At first sight, the Duero valley is not the most congenial place to grow grapes. At between 700 and 850 m/2,800 ft above sea level, the growing season is relatively short. frost, commonplace in winter, continues to be a threat well into the spring. Temperatures, which can reach nearly 40 °C/104 °F in the middle of a July day, fall sharply at night—a phenomenon associated with wine quality elsewhere (see temperature variability).
The potential was recognized by Alejandro Fernández, who played a key role in the considerable development of the region in the 1980s. Pesquera, his wine vinified from grapes growing around the village of Pesquera del Duero a short distance upstream from Vega Sicilia, was released in the early 1980s to international acclaim. Other growers (many of whom had previously sold their grapes to the co-operatives) were thereby encouraged to make and market their own wines, soon challenging Rioja’s traditional hegemony inside Spain. In the 1990s, consumption of top-quality Ribera wines soared within Spain, causing deepening concern in Rioja. Several Ribera producers attained quality levels not much below those of Vega Sicilia and Pesquera.
The region’s principal vine variety, the Tinto Fino (also called Tinta del Pais), is a local variant of Rioja’s tempranillo. It seems to have adapted to the Duero’s climatic extremes and produces deep-coloured, occasionally astringent, firm-flavoured red wines without the support of any other grape variety. White wine made from albillo has been entitled to the DO since 2020 but is still occasionally blended into the intense red wine to lighten the load and add glycerine content. Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, and Malbec, introduced by Vega Sicilia 130 years ago, are now allowed throughout the denomination. Garnacha is used in the production of rosé.
Rueda - OCW
Rueda, historic Spanish white wine zone named after the unprepossessing town which straddles the main road from Madrid to León in castilla y león (see map under spain). In the Middle Ages, vineyards flourished on this bleak Castilian plateau and cellars were hollowed out of the limestone under the town, but after phylloxera ravaged the zone, Rueda went into rapid decline. The high-yielding palomino grape was used for replanting, a move that in this case was justified since the main local styles were fortified wines in the image of sherry.
For much of the 20th century, the local verdejo grape was Rueda’s sleeping beauty. It was awoken in the 1970s, when Bodegas Marqués de Riscal of rioja recognized the area’s potential for dry white wine and sold a fresh Rueda white alongside its Rioja reds. Rueda was awarded do status in 1980 and the local Consejo Regulador succeeded in relaunching the native variety of which there were nearly three times as much as of Palomino in the mid 2000s, a radical reversal of the previous situation. Fortified wines are hardly made today and modern Rueda is a light, fruity, dry white wine. It may be made from a blend of Viura (macabeo) and Verdejo, the latter accounting for at least 50% of the blend, or it may be a sauvignon blanc varietal. Rueda Superior must contain at least 85% Verdejo and, as more farmers convert their vineyards, there are ever more varietal wines. Sauvignon Blanc was introduced by Marqués de Riscal in the early 1980s. Some fine, elegant wines have resulted, including one from one of the lurton family of Bordeaux.
tempranillo produces some typically firm red wine in the zone. In 2002, red wines were admitted in the Rueda DO but are rarely seen.
Toro -OCW
oro, revolutionized Spanish red wine zone in castilla y león (see map under spain) whose wines were famous within Spain in medieval times. This wild and remote zone spans the Duero valley east of Zamora. It was accorded do status in 1987. At an elevation of between 600 and 750 m/2,000–2,800 ft, growing conditions are severe. The dry, stony soils can support cereals or vines. The region’s principal grape variety, Tinta de Toro, is a local variant of Rioja’s tempranillo which has adapted to the climatic extremes of this part of Spain. The grapes need careful handling. Left to their own devices, they will easily ripen to a potential alcohol level of 16%. Local regulations permit a maximum alcoholic strength of 15% but the best wines usually have a strength of around 13.5
Rioja -OCW
La Rioja is the oldest winemaking province in argentina but Rioja is probably best known in the wine world as the leading wine region of spain, producing predominantly red wines in the north of the country. Named after the río (river) Oja, a tributary of the river Ebro, most of the Rioja wine region lies in the autonomous region of La Rioja in north east Spain, although parts of the zone extend into the neighbouring basque country to the north west and navarra to the north east. Centred on the regional capital Logroño, Rioja divides into three zones along the axis of the river Ebro. Rioja Alta occupies the part of the Ebro valley west of Logroño and includes the winemaking town of Haro. Rioja Alavesa is the name given to the section of the zone north of the river Ebro which falls in the Basque province of Alava. Rioja Baja extends from the suburbs of Logroño south and east to include the towns of Calahorra and Alfaro. In 2013, Rioja had 63,500 ha/152,400 acres of vines.
