Sunny Spain confidently holds the honorary bronze on the podium among the most prolific wine-producing countries in the world after neighboring France and Italy. But the number of hectares given in the country for vineyards is a record: for the production of wine in Spain, fruits grown on a whole million hectares are used.
Extensive geography and aging standards
The wines of Spain are produced in absolutely all regions and autonomous units of the country. The most "prolific" in this sense is the province of Castile-La Mancha. It accounts for half of the total Spanish wine production. The regions of Catalonia, Andalusia and Extremadura make a significant contribution.
The aging time of Spanish wines is considered one of the main quality criteria, and therefore the law regulates the designation of this product characteristic:
- Noble wines are generally aged in oak barrels and bottles for at least one and a half years, while the volume of the container should not exceed 600 liters.
- Anejo class products are infused for two years.
- Viejo are older wines, which took at least three years to produce, and their character was formed under the influence of heat, light and oxidative processes.
- Red wines of Spain of the Reserva category must spend at least three years in barrels and bottles, and the volume of each oak container must not exceed 330 liters. For white and rosé reserve wines, two years in barrels of the same capacity are enough.
- Gran Reserva reds are aged for five years, while pinks and whites are aged for four years.
A word about sherry
Sherry is considered one of the most famous wines in Spain among gourmets and sommeliers around the world. This fortified wine product is produced in Andalusia. Sherry wine is distinguished by the peculiarities of production, which is based on the fermentation of the wort under a film of special yeast. It is called flor and remains on the surface of the barrel during the entire maturation period of the wine. Flor prevents oxidation and helps to obtain a special strength, aroma and astringency of taste. The barrels with the produced sherry are not filled to the end and, being in them, the wine "rests" for several months.
The two main types of sherry produced by the Spanish differ precisely in the amount of time spent under the flora. Fino-type wines "rest" for about three years, and Oloroso wines - only a few weeks.
