The wine in Spain is no longer mainly plain

The wine in Spain is no longer mainly plain

Advances in grapes, vineyards have raised the country’s game

By Gary Parker

 

David Brooks. Gary Parker, owner of The WineSellar & Brasserie in Sorrento Mesa.

Spain’s quality classifications

Here is an overview of how Spain delineates the quality of wines on labels:

Vino de Mesa (VdM): Cheap, branded table wines.

Vino de la Terra (VdIT): All grapes come from one region, like France’s “Vin de Pays” system.

Vino de Calidad Producido en Región Determinada (VCPRD): This level is similar to France’s “Délimité de Qualité Supérieure” system and is considered a steppingstone toward DO status.

Denominación de Origen (DO): Comparable to Italian DOC, two-thirds of vineyard properties are used to make wine in this mainstream category.

Denominación de Origen Calificada (DOCa/DOQ): A “Super Category” for wines that meet special criteria of quality and consistency. Currently, you only find these in the wine regions of Rioja, Priorat, and Ribera del Duero.

Spain’s Age Designations

Spanish wines are often labeled according to the amount of aging the wine has received.

Vino Joven, or Vino del Ano: Young wine for immediate consumption, generally no use of wood.

Crianza: Up to two full calendars years of storage; minimum six months in barrel. For the Crianza white wines, six months in barrel and one year storage.

Reserva: Three calendar years in the Bodega, at least one year in the barrel. For Reserva white wines, two years in the Bodega after six months in the barrels.

Gran Reserva: Permitted only in exceptional vintages. Three years in the bottle after two years in barrel. Gran Reserva whites and rosés must be aged for at least 4 years with at least 6 months in oak.

I’m on a bullet train from San Sebastian, Spain, on my way to Madrid. Traveling at speeds just south of 200 miles per hour, I have a few hours to relax before reaching my destination. The sun is setting behind some low-lying hills, lighting the countryside with amber and golden hues. It is visually stunning, and as I am leaving Spain after nearly three weeks of wine tasting, dining and culture, it is a perfect time to reflect on my experiences in this beautiful country.

This was my first time to visit Spain. I had planned to go in January of 1996. I was actually sitting on board the plane in San Diego. But before pulling back from the gate, the pilot announced that the St. Louis connection was iced and snowed in, and we had to wait for clearance. We disembarked, as instructed, as another incoming flight needed to use our gate. But within five minutes, the pilot got the “all clear” from St. Louis, and we were called back to the plane. Since we were the first off the plane, we were out of earshot of the announcement, so they took off without us. Our bags went, but we didn’t. Staycation time.

In retrospect, I think it was fortuitous that I didn’t get to Spain until 2011. Over those years, Spain has grown into a more friendly wine-tasting country. Fifteen years ago, you could count on the fingers of your hands the wineries that accommodated tours and tastings. That has changed dramatically, as we were welcomed and even solicited to have our groups come by and sample wares and see facilities.

Fifteen years ago, Spain wineries had not significantly invested in the vineyards and winemaking processes to go beyond their Old World styles. Very few wineries were looking to the future. But in 1996, restrictions on irrigation were lifted, and the quality began to skyrocket. Now you see the results of the major investments and improvements in the production of fine wine. There are more exacting vineyard protocols, harvest procedures, fine oak barrels and contemporary packaging. The consistent overall quality of the today’s Spanish wine offerings is convincingly demonstrated with the exciting, well-priced selections we have in our local restaurants and wine shops.

Through the Rioja and Ribera del Duero wine regions, Tempranillo is the king of the red wine grape. The vast majority of the red wines are made using Tempranillo, either as the sole varietal or as a high percentage of a blended wine. For the blended wines, The Tempranillo generally makes up to 70 percent to 90 percent of the Cuvée. For the remainder of their blends, winemakers may add varying amounts of Granacha (widely grown, robust), Mazuelo (for balance) and Graciano (low yield, high quality). In Priorat Region, Granacha rules the varietals.

Some insist Tempranillo is “cousin” to Pinot Noir, but I don’t see much resemblance. One of the winemakers we visited said DNA evidence has proved the Pinot Noir theory wrong. To me, Tempranillo feels and tastes more like merlot, with dark chocolate, cherry and deep red fruit nuances that are very appealing. The textures are typically silken, without a great deal of harsh tannins. The wineries are getting good fruit extraction from the grapes and use French and American oak to round out the flavor profile. Quite yummy, we all agreed!

The white wines don’t seem to get the same attention from the Spaniards as do the red, but I really did enjoy a number of them. Wine produced from the Verdejo grape before 2000 used to have an oxidized trait. This has now been replaced with a fresher, lighter style. The Albariño is aromatic, with high levels of acidity and low alcohol levels. Garnacha Blanc (white Grenache) is made with high alcohol and fruit levels, sometimes seeing oak aging. A wonderful everyday drinker is Viura (Mabaceo), which is an excellent stand-alone varietal but is also used with Xarel-lo and Parellada to make their sparkling Cava.

I had a number of great meals in every city I visited. With more tourists visiting Spain, many restaurants have raised the bar in the quest for culinary excellence. Tapas are the big trend, but it turns out I am not a big fan of tapas. In general. I find many to have a lot of bread and fatty meats, which don’t suit my dietary or culinary sensibilities.

However, the best meal I had was at a tapas bar in San Sebastian called Bar Zeruko. In fact, I had two meals at Bar Zeruko, one with each of the groups we took on the wine tour. Sitting down with eight people, we could see it was going to be challenging to get the food we wanted, as we would have to battle the thundering herd standing around the food bar jockeying to place orders.

I got the attention of the owner, a pleasant and attractive woman, who handed me the chef’s tasting menu. I realized we didn’t have to fight the crowds, do the tasting menu and we would get eight tapas courses sent to us. So, we enjoyed watching the frenzied, stand-up action as we sat sipping our wines and relaxing. I am very happy to report that by presentation, creativity and execution of each dish, it was one of the most memorable meals I have ever had.

Also worthy of mention was Restaurant Urbano, a small, intimate space also in San Sebastian. It was a sit-down meal, not tapas style.

Also noteworthy is that we found restaurant wine pricing very fair at most restaurants or tapas bars.

Now doesn’t Spain sound great? Vale!

Gary Parker is the owner of The WineSellar & Brasserie in Sorrento Mesa. He can be reached at gparker@winesellar.com

Origin information: Signon San Diego