SPANISH WINE 101

For those of you who love Spanish wine or want to start drinking it, this is perfect for you! I was lucky enough to spend some time living in Spain last year, and it was there that I had my first real taste and then enjoyment of Red Wine. I visited the Marques de Riscal Winery - designed by Frank Gehry. It was here that I learned and watched the production of how wine is made, where it's made and the overall process. It was an extremely interesting tour, I would highly recommend taking a wine tour at some point if you have a chance. It's fascinating. Anyways, here is your little Spanish wine lesson for the day...

Here is a lesson in Spanish Wine, courtesy of Mario Batali, Spanish food and country enthusiast !

Spanish wine is labeled according to the amount of aging the wine has received. A bottle labeled vino joven (“young wine”) or sin crianza (“without aging”) will have had little–to–no wood aging. These wines are often intended for consumption within a year of release. The three most common aging designations on Spanish wine labels are Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva.

* Crianza red wines are aged for two years, with at least six months of aging in oak casks.

* Crianza whites and rosé must be aged for at least one year with at least six months spent in oak.

* Reserva red wines are aged for at least three years with at least one year of aging in oak casks.

* Reserva whites and rosé must be aged for at least 2 years with at least six months in oak.

* Gran Reserva designation is typically reserved for the highest-quality vintages. Reds require at least five years of aging, 18 months of which must be in oak. Whites and rosé must be aged for at least four years with at least six months in oak casks.

The vintage year or cosecha on any bottle of Spanish wine indicates that at least of 85% of the grapes used in the wine come from that specific year’s harvest. 

Marques de Riscal Wine Tour Pictures: