Relocation at Spain One Stop

Spanish Wines and Sherry

Spanish labeling laws

Spanish wines are often labeled according to the amount of aging the wine has received. When the label says vino joven ("young wine") or sin crianza, the wines will have subjected to very little, if any, wood aging. Depending on the producer, some of these wines will be meant to be consumed very young-often within a year of their release. Others will benefit from some time aging in the bottle. For the vintage year (vendimia or cosecha) to appear on the label, a minimum of 85% of the grapes must be from that year's harvest. The three most common aging designations on Spanish wine labels are Crianza, Reserva and Gran Reserva.

What the labels mean

• Crianza red wines are aged for 2 years with at least 6 months in oak. Crianza whites and rosé must be aged for at least 1 year with at least 6 months in oak.
• Reserva red wines are aged for at least 3 years with at least 1 year in oak. Reserva whites and rosé must be aged for at least 2 years with at least 6 months in oak.
• Gran Reserva wines typically appears in above average vintages and with the red wines requiring at least 5 years aging, 18 months of which in oak. Gran Reserva whites and rosé must be aged for at least 4 years with at least 6 months in oak.

Know your Sherry

Sherry is a fortified wine produced in southern Spain around the towns of Jerez, Sanlúcar de Barrameda, and El Puerto de Santa María. In the 1990s, the European Union restricted the use of name "Sherry" to the wine made from this region. It mostly made from the Palomino grape, accounting for nearly 95% of the regions plantings, but Moscatel and Pedro Ximenez can also be used. While the wine is aging in the barrel, a naturally occurring yeast native to the region, known as flor, will develop and distinguish certain styles of Sherry. The flor needs fresh wine in order to survive and is added by the use of a solera system that also gradually blends the wines of different vintages together. Palomino wine, by itself, typically ferments to an alcohol level of around 12% with Sherry producers adding brandy to the wine in order to increase the alcohol level or kill the flor yeast which will not thrive in alcohol levels above 16%.

Sherry has many categories:

• Fino Sherry is a very light and delicate Sherry. These wines are characterized by flor. It often contains 15 to 18% of alcohol.
• Manzanilla Sherry comes from the Sanlucar district along the sea coast. The sea air leads the Sherry to develop a salty taste. These wines also have flor. This wine is produced using exactly the same process than Fino, but as weather conditions are very different in Sanlucar district it grows to a slightly different kind of wine. It often contains 15 to 19% of alcohol.
• Amontillado Sherry is similar to Fino, however it does not have the as much flor development. These are deeper in color and drier than Finos and are left in the barrel longer. It often contains 16 to 22% of alcohol.
• Oloroso Sherry is deeper/darker in color and have more residual sugar. These are more fortified. It often contains 17 to 22% of alcohol.
• Cream Sherry is very rich and can be a good dessert-style wine. It often contains 15.5 to 22% of alcohol.
• Pedro Ximénez Sherry is very rich and is a popular dessert-style wine. It's made from raisins of Pedro Ximenez grapes dried in the sun. It often contains around 18% of alcohol.
• Palo Cortado Sherry is very rare, as its an Oloroso wine that gets older in a different way only produced by nature (not able by human interaction). It often contains 17 to 22% of alcohol.

Cava or Spanish sparkling wine

Cava is a Spanish sparkling wine made in the traditional method of the French sparkling wine Champagne. It originated in the Catalonia region by the Codorníu Winery in the late 19th century. The wine was originally known as Champaña until Spanish producers officially adopted the term "Cava" (cellar) in 1970 in reference to the underground cellars in which the wines ferment and age in the bottle. The early Cava industry was nurtured by the phylloxera epidemic of the late 19th that caused the destruction and uprooting of vineyards planted with red grape varieties. Inspired by the success of Champagne, Codorníu and others encouraged vineyard owners to replant with white grape varieties like Macabeo, Parellada and Xarel·lo to use for sparkling wine production. These grapes are still the primary grapes of Cava today though some producers are experimenting with the use of the Champagne wine grapes of Chardonnay and Pinot noir.

For most of existence, the production of Cava was not regulated to a particular region of DO but rather to the grapes and method of production. Upon Spain's acceptance into the European Union in 1986, efforts were undertaken to designate specific areas for Cava production. Today use of the term "Cava" is restricted to production around select municipalities in Catalonia, Aragon, Castile and León, Valencia, Extremadura, Navarra, Basque Country and Rioja. Around 95% of Spain's total Cava production is from Catalonia with the village of Sant Sadurní d'Anoia being home to many of Spain's largest production house.