Spain is one of the world’s fastest-growing fine wine countries, yet Spanish wine is more unfamiliar to many than Bordeaux or Burgundy. Here, Master of Wine and Spain Buyer, Catriona Felstead MW, guides us through this hub of exceptional winemaking, and breaks down what you need to know about key Spanish wine regions

I am often asked what my favourite wine is. It is a question that I struggle to answer, given the number of truly incredible wines there are in the world (it’s like being asked to choose your favourite child), but I always come back to the same response: “I can’t give you my favourite wine, but I can say that it would probably be a wine from Spain.”

So, why Spain? Well, I admit, it is partly personal. Spain holds a very special place in my heart; I had my first ever ‘wine moment’ there. One evening back in 1997, I went into a bar in Granada and asked for a simple glass of “vino tinto”. I was travelling in Spain after a year abroad in France as part of my university studies. Up until that moment, I had enjoyed drinking wine (I had just spent a year in France after all) but I certainly hadn’t ever really appreciated it. When I tried that wine, I had a transformative experience; it was unlike anything I had ever tasted before. The flavours and complexity in that glass completely blew my mind.

Annoyingly, I don’t remember the vintage, but I do recall that it was a glass of Viña Cubillo from Bodegas R. López de Heredia, one of the most wonderful, unashamedly traditional, styles of Rioja. That was the moment that I decided I wanted to learn more, the moment that set me on a path to a career in wine, and ultimately to attaining my Master of Wine qualification in 2012.

But this particular Rioja “wine moment” of mine is just the tip of the iceberg. There are so many regions to explore in Spain, which also has so many of its own grape varieties, and so many diverse styles.

Spain’s wine regions: Rioja

Central to most people’s experience of Spanish wine is Rioja.

Rioja is actually a ‘Denominación de Origen Clasificada’, the very highest quality level achievable under Spanish wine law. Along with Priorat, Rioja is only one of two Spanish regions that have ever been awarded this status. This doesn’t mean that all Rioja DOCa wines are uniformly great, but it does mean that the minimum quality standards that need to be adhered to here, in both the vineyards and wineries, are more exacting.

Rioja is an unbelievably beautiful region. Tempranillo thrives here, along with its common blending partners Graciano, Mazuelo and Garnacha (Grenache). Red wines are medium-bodied and elegant, in both modern, fruit-forward and traditionally complex styles.

Viura is the mainstay grape of the whites, capable of producing both youthful, fresh styles as well as some of the most astonishing, mature, nutty, complex wines you could ever wish to taste.

There are three main sub-regions: Rioja Alavesa, Rioja Alta and Rioja Oriental. Rioja Alavesa is closest to the mountains (it actually lies inside the Basque Country) and often produces wines with just a touch more red fruit and freshness.

Rioja Alta is the traditional heart of the region, containing the city of Logroño. Many of Rioja’s most famous and long-standing producers are based in Haro, almost on top of one another in the Barrio de la Estación district.

As the name suggests, this district is right by the railway station, the railway itself having been of huge historical importance to the success of Rioja. A series of dreadful harvest started in Bordeaux in 1863, followed by the devastating impact of phylloxera four years later. During this time, the Bordelais came to Rioja, searching for good volumes of wine to buy to transport north to boost their production. This was the start of the great Rioja bodegas as we know them now.

 Last, but by no means least, is Rioja Oriental. Thanks to the huge efforts of the inspirational Álvaro Palacios, this is no longer called “Rioja Baja”, which made it sound like a lowly neighbour. This is the true home of Garnacha. The region is dominated by volume-driven co-operatives, but it is also capable of producing some incredibly pure and ethereal styles of red wine.

Spain’s wine regions: Ribera del Duero

Only an hour’s drive south of Haro, and you are in Ribera del Duero, famed for its intense and fruit-forward red wines. These are often made solely from the Tempranillo grape, which here is called Tinto Fino, but some very famous producers, such as Vega Sicilia, famously add Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot to their blends.

One of the main differences between Ribera del Duero and Rioja is the altitude. Ribera lies on the northern plateau of the Iberian Peninsula and its vineyards lie between 750m and 900m altitude, higher than the 300m to 500m average in Rioja.

Ribera also has more of an extreme continental climate than Rioja (which is more moderate as it is closer to the sea). This means that it has hotter days and cooler nights, producing red grapes with thicker skins, and therefore making wines of more density and deeper colour.

Spain’s wine regions: Rueda and Toro

Just further to the west of Ribera del Duero are the smaller regions of Rueda and Toro. Rueda is dominated by the white grape, Verdejo, which makes grassy yet textured styles of white wine, a little along the lines of Sauvignon Blanc.

Toro has similar conditions to Ribera, still high up on the plateau with the majority of vineyards at a high altitude. However, it is closer to Portugal and generally even hotter here. Tempranillo is still king – but here it is called Tinto de Toro.

The soil is also full of remarkable pudding stone pebbles, similar to the galets found in Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The reflection of the heat from these makes the growing conditions even hotter, leading to even more powerful red wines, often with a little less sophistication than Ribera del Duero.

Spain’s wine regions: Galicia

Moving north from here, we eventually reach Spain’s beautiful north-west. Galicia is a green, verdant region, thanks to its generally cooler, wet weather and proximity to the sea. It has many sub-regions: Rias Baixas is the best known for its fresh, salty white wines made from the local grape, Albariño. Moving into Ribeiro and Ribeira Sacra and beyond, this is then often blended with other local partners, Treixadura and Loureiro, and many other historic, local varieties. Godello has risen as another star grape of the region, namely thanks to Rafael Palacios (Álvaro’s younger brother) and his incredible work here turning this into wines that can rival some of the fines Burgundies in complexity.

Crisp, crunchy reds are also produced, often as blends of many local grapes, but with the star usually being Mencia. What Rafa has done for Galician whites, Telmo Rodiguez has achieved for Galician reds, both based very near each other in the eastern subregion of Valdeorras.

Spain’s wine regions: Bierzo

Just over the mountains is Bierzo, which has gained fame for its red, Mencia-dominant wines. The mountainous border keeps Bierzo much dryer than Galicia, lending more of a richness to the wines.

Descendientes de J. Palacios, a joint project with Álvaro and his nephew Ricardo Pérez Palacios is one to watch here, as they produce tiny volumes of sensational red wines high up in the mountains. Their most prized vineyard, La Faraona, produces electric wines, full of indescribable energy, finesse and power.

Spain’s wine regions: Priorat

Flying back over Rioja to the eastern coast of Spain, we get to Catalonia and the historic regions of Priorat and Penedès.

Priorat, if you recall, is the other DOCa region of Spain, making luscious yet sophisticated wines from Garnacha and Cariñena (also here called Samsó), often from very old vines. The soil is predominantly a volcanic black slate called llicorella which absorbs heat whilst also reflecting sunlight.

International varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Syrah are also authorised here, and a much smaller volume of white wines is also made. This is where Álvaro Palacios made his name, crafting astonishing, remarkable wines from around the village of Gratallops.

Sangenís i Vaqué is another great producer here, producing more traditional wines of great character. It is very small and run by a historic Priorat family which can trace its wine-producing descendants right back to the 1700s.

Spain’s wine regions: Penedès

Moving now into the heart of Spanish sparkling wine production, we arrive in Penedès. Historically this is the home of mass-produced, traditional-method Cava made from indigenous grapes Macabeo (Viura), Parellada and Xarel-lo, as well as Chardonnay and Malvasia, although Cava can also be produced in other Spanish regions.

Penedès is now led by a number of premium producers who have moved away from the fairly innocuous Cava DO designation to make instead top quality “Spanish sparkling wine”. Leading the way was Pepe Raventós, who removed his family property, Raventós i Blanc, from the Cava DO back in 2012 to focus on creating terroir-driven sparkling wines from the marine-fossil soils of Conca del Riu Anoia.

Eleven other famous premium producers in the region, including the venerated Gramona, also pulled away from the Cava DO to create a separate group, “Corpinnat”, in 2017. Meaning “heart of Penedès”, this group commits to producing 100% organic wines with very strict quality rules.

Spain’s wine regions: Jerez

There are so many other small regions in Spain to discover, in addition to those already mentioned here, but one final region that we cannot ignore is Jerez. Right down in the south of Spain, Jerez is set apart both geographically and stylistically from the rest of this fascinating country. The reason for that is that it is home to Spain’s iconic fortified wine, Sherry.

Whilst it is often common to think of Sherry as being sweet (and much of the bulk production is), the most lauded styles tend to be the dry wines. Some of these are made under the influence of the flor yeast that thrives here. Nutty, almond-salted Manzanillas and Finos, hazelnut-led Amontillados and walnut-focused Olorosos are just some delights to be discovered from incredible, quality conscious producers such as Bodegas Lustau.

For those that enjoy a dry Manzanilla with juicy green olives, almonds and jamón ibérico (myself included), it is hard to beat as the finest food and wine match on the planet.

Spain is such a fascinating and diverse country, there really is something for everyone here; crisp, mineral sparkling wines from Penedès, dry, saline white wines from Galicia, elegant, smooth Riojas, powerful Priorat and Ribera del Duero wines and deliciously nutty Sherries, amongst many others. Some of these are amongst the very finest wines in the world, and just get into your heart and soul when you drink them. This is why I keep coming back again and again to Spain when I buy wine to drink at home – ¡salud!

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