Ribera del Duero Wine: the taste of excellence

The home of Ribera del Duero

Ribera del Duero is one of the high-quality wine producing regions of not only Spain but also the world. It is confirmed that Ribera del Duero was selected as wine region of the year in 2012 by Wine Enthusiast Magazine. The region is located in Castilla y León, northern Spain. The area is geographically a plateau at 800m above sea level. The nearby Demanda and Guadarrama mountain ranges strengthen continental climate of the area by creating hot and dry summers which are followed by harsh winters. Temperatures range from -15 C to 45 C. The climate essentially helps the grapes to gain the texture and taste needed for production of strong red wines. The region is located on lands of four historic Spanish provinces: Valladolid, Soria, Burgos, and Segovia. Therefore historical constructions like cathedrals, monuments, fortresses or castles are within short or average distances to the vineyards or villages that make wine. Incredible countryside cuisine of central Spain can be found throughout the region in terms of both taste and smell. Delicate meals made of pork, delicious slices of cured ham , flavourful and cured cheeses are only a few of them.

Duero river provides the water needed for the vineyards and runs west towards Portugal by slicing some other Spanish wine production areas, like Toro and Rueda, then it becomes the Duoro and nourishes Duoro and Porto regions of Portugal.

51,000 acres of land are dedicated to wine production in the area. The main grape variety in Ribera del Duero is Tempranillo which makes up 95 percent of wine production. The 'Denomination of Origin' (D.O.) rules also allow use of some other grape types like Garnacha, Malbec, Cabernet Sauvignon. Albillo is the only white grape harvested in the area, and is produced in small amounts for local consumption so doesn't have the Ribera del Duero D.O. title.

History of Ribera del Duero

2000-year-old Bacchian mosaic tile floor proves that wine has been produced in Ribera del Duero since Roman times. It became widespread with the arrival of monasteries. Monks and monasteries were significant grape and wine producers as is the case with Rioja wines. Despite this, Denomination de Origin (D.O.) status was only granted on the region in 1982. Ribera del Duero became the second Spanish wine with DO, the first one being Rioja wines. The only old thing in the region is not wine production itself, more than 25% of vines planted in the region are at least 50 years old, and approximately 3% are over 100 years old.

Ribera del Duero means Quality

Ribera del Duero's focus and attention on quality of wine leads them to limit the amount of grape which can be produced per acre, the maximum amount of grape allowed to produce per acre is 3.1 tons. However the average yield in the last decades has been 1.6 tons per acre, signalling that quality control is central to the work of Ribera del Duero producers.

Ribera del Duero recently launched the touristic activity of Ruta del vino , a route of wine by which guests visit vineyards, underground cellars (bodegas) and some stages of wine production along with the beautiful views of Iberia peninsula. The cities of Aranda del Duero, Burgos, Valladolid and Peñafiel are added to the route for wine and culinary enthusiasts.

Oak ageing is a remarkable technique and process in the production of Ribera del Duero which improves the quality of the wine. French oak has been used in the region for centuries. Today both French and American oak are used because different kinds of oak enable producers to end up with different aromas. The Ribera del Duero wines are categorized according to the amount of time they spent in oak barrels:

-Joven wine is young which has no oak ageing or less than one year of ageing.

-Crianza wines are supposed to age at least 1 year in an oak barrel and 1 year in a bottle.

-Reserva wines must spend at least 1 year in an oak barrel and 2 years in a bottle.

-Gran Reserva wines are often produced from the best vintages of a season when the fruit is quality enough to be able to age 2 years in barrel and 3 years in bottle.

Ribera del Duero wines are becoming increasingly popular. It competes internationally with other wine awards. Today the quantity of Ribera del Duero produced is more than 60 million litres annually and the number is growing as its international market enlarges and as more people have the chance to taste it.

If you've never tried the Ribera del Duero or you always drink the same, you can't say you're a wine lover. Dare with ours wines. Taste it here.