Spanish Wines - Ole'

Since spending time in Spain, one tends to do as the locals do and sip a glass of wine and watch the world go by....just like in France.  But what to drink?

Being new arrivals to Spain, the need to explore the the wines seems like an important task - because it is!  The only Spanish wines I knew were Freixenet Cava (sparking wine) and Rioja wines, from the NE section Spain.  However, Spain is large country and many areas produce wine:
Jerez (sherry), Rioja, Ribera de Duero, Jumilla and Rueda just some of the regions I've sampled so far.  With more than 70 wine producing regions, there's a whole lot of sampling that still needs to be done!

Rioja Wine - Some of these vines came from Bordeaux region of France (read the label on a bottle of Rioja wine from wine maker Marques de Riscal).  The Rioja wines are an excellent alternative to Bordeaux wines.  These are full bodied red wines and I absolutely love them!
Try:
Marques de Caceres, Campo Viejo, Juan Gil and Ramon Bilbao - all under $20 a bottle
For something I thought was a little lighter, I enjoyed the Marques de Riscal Proximo.

But red wine isn't the only wine made in the Rioja.   The region produces beautiful white Rioja wines, too.  Well worth trying these dry wines; served chilled, it is perfect for enjoying alone or with a meal.

And Rioja isn't the only region to make whites!  Countless other wine regions throughout Spain make delicious whites.  For example, the Verdejo grape from the Rueda region makes a great refreshing, dry white.  I rather much enjoy the whites from Rueda! Again, the cost for these are very easy on the wallet and very tasty on the palate!

Of course, many of us know the sparkling wine (Cava) Freixenet.  This winemaker makes several varieties of the "fizz" and they just keep getting better and better! There's Cordon Negro (Brut=dry),
Cordon Negro Rose' and Carta Nevada (Brut)....great sparkling wines to celebrate anything and everything!

Wines in Spain are rated as follows:
Classification:
DO covers about 70 regions
DOC only the two regions of Rioja and Priorat

Aging:
Vina de Mesa (table wine) and Vino de la Tierra (country wine)
Crianza - aged minimum of 2 years (with a minimum of 1 year in oak barrel)
Reserva - aged minimum of 3 years (with a minimum of 1 year in oak barrel)
Gran Reserva - aged 2 years in oak and 3 years in the bottle
Try:
The Campo Viejo Gran Reserva is about $22 a bottle
Muga Especial Reserva is about $35

Take a trip down the Spanish wine aisle of your local wine shop.  Our "Total Wine" shop carries a great selection of Spanish wines, so it makes it real easy to try new varieties and enjoy a lazy afternoon!  Hope you have the chance to try some of the suggestions!

Enjoy!