WINE-COUNTRIES SPAIN

1 - Andalusia
2 - Catalunia
3 - The Central Regions
4 - Cuenca del Duero
5 - Cuenca dell'Ebro
6 - Cordillera cantabrica
7 - The Islands
8 - Levante
9 - The North West Wineries

Vineyard area: 1.445 million hectares

Total production: 36.7 million hectolitres

Annual consumption
total: 14.5 million hectolitres
per capita: 38 litres

Exports: 6.761 million hectolitres

Imports: 78 thousand hectolitres

Principal grape varieties: tempranillo, xarello, parellada, garnacha blanca, garnacha tinta, garnacha tintorera, pedro ximénez, loureiro, macabeo, palomino, monastrell, treixadura, preto picudo, albarin, verdejo, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, caino, carinena, chardonnay, godello, graciano, grau, malvasía, moristell, negramoll.

Spain's wine culture is as old as civilisation and goes back to the era in which the Greeks and Phoenicians founded their first colonies along the Spanish coast. They planted vineyards which were later extended by the Carthaginians and the Romans, who also revolutionised the way wines were made, fermenting them in large earthenware containers called "orcae", after which they were kept in smaller amphoras. Today "tinajas", the present form of these ancient containers are still used in many cellars in La Mancha, Montilla and Valdepenas. Following the short Visigoth era which brought with it cultural as well as oenological splendour, under Arab rule the development of Spain's wine culture was slowed down because of the prohibitionist teachings of the Koran. Nevertheless wine production continued under cover, mainly by Benedictine monks in areas which had been won back by Christians. In 1492 the last Muslim stronghold at Granada fell and in the same year Christopher Columbus found an immense virgin market for many products including wine, which the conquistadors imported into the newly discovered continent.

Jerez and Malaga, being in the proximity of principle ports were the first to attract the attention of foreign markets. Italian, English and French merchants contributed to improve the quality of local wines and Jerez became much appreciated in royal circles at London, where it became known as Sherry Sack or simply Sack. From then on Andalucia and to a lesser extent the rest of Spain continued to produce styles of wine which soon became regarded as traditional and which centuries-old companies still continue to make. Over the centuries Spain's wine industry experienced periods of boom and slump, though it never came to a complete halt. Following the civil war years in which grapes in many vineyards were never harvested, and the 1960s and 1970s when mass production resulted in poor, often barely drinkable wines, the situation began to improve during the 1980s.

Today Spain's viticultural panorama is becoming increasingly variegated and quality is rising rapidly. In less than a decade wine production has undergone an impressive renewal process. Many of the old mistakes, false opinions and absurd traditions which characterised the sector, putting into doubt the future of a nation which is one of the world leaders in wine production, distribution and export alongside France and Italy, have been eliminated.

Certain examples are startling, such as the appellation of origin (Do) Rías Baixas, in which the white wines, once almost undrinkable have been transformed into magnificent products by forward-looking producers who have availed themselves of modern technology. Similar developments have taken place in other regions which have never enjoyed much prestige, such as Somontano where premium international varieties including Chardonnay, Riesling, Gewürztraminer and others are now producing splendid results. This has also happened in other parts of Spain (Navarra, Catalonia, Alicante) with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir.

Spain has around 1.5 million hectares under vine which is around 8 per cent of the country's total agricultural area. Even though Spain has the world's largest vineyard area, low yields per hectare place her behind Italy and France in terms of total wine production. The terrain in many parts is arid, rainfall is scarce and irrigation is forbidden by law. Progress is underway though mechanisation is slow in arriving and cultivation costs remain correspondingly high.

As in other countries yields per hectare vary from region to region according to soils and cultivation methods. The regions with lowest yields are Aragona, Castilla-Léon and Murchia while Andalucia and Galicia have higher yielding vineyards. In terms of total production Castilla-La Mancha leads and the region also has the largest area planted with vines. The average size of vineyard holdings also varies from area to area, though in general it is below 25 hectares. A large number of wine growers have their produce marketed by cooperatives. One example is the Específica de Cigales appellation of origin, known for its cask aged rosé wines where 165 cooperative members work 617 hectares of vineyard, which averages out at 3.5 hectares per member. Many cellars are small and family run.

Although many private wineries have their own vineyards most are not self sufficient and have to rely on grapes supplied by local growers, with whom they often have contracts. This is especially true of the Rioja area where leading producers pay as much as 20 pesetas per kilo for premium quality grapes. Even producers with extensive vineyards of their own invariably buy in grapes. Although it may seem advantageous to have a broad base of raw materials available in order to select, correct or improve wines, producers are becoming increasingly aware that to make truly fine wine it is necessary to exercise complete control over the vineyards and the trend towards estate bottled wines is gathering momentum, based on the French château model. This development is especially apparent in Rioja and is spreading to other emerging appellations of origin such as Tarragona, Alicante, Ribera de Duero and others. Such trends go hand in hand with improvements in technology among Spain's wineries, which exceed 10,000 in number. Developments include the introduction of stainless steel tanks for temperature controlled fermentation, up-to-date crushing and filtration techniques and the substitution of old casks with French oak barriques (especially Allier). Barrique aged reds have found considerable favour, as have white wines which have been fermented in oak.

General improvements in quality are accompanied by similar developments in marketing to assure a bright future for Spain's wine industry.