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09 October 2015

Top 3 Spanish Red Wines

Spanish red wine is one the most favourable wines out there. Spain has over 2.9 million acres planted, which makes it the most widely planted wine producing nation, but is the third largest producer of wine worldwide.

There are records that estimate that over 600 grape varieties are planted throughout Spain, but 80% of the country’s wine production is predominantly focused on only twenty of these varieties. The most widely planted grape would be the white wine grape Airén. The second most widely planted grape variety however, is the red wine grape Tempranillo.

Tempranillo appears under a few names including Tinto Fino, Tinto de Toro and Ull de Llebre. Rioja and Ribera del Duero are the two most famous regions for this grape variety. Rioja is north-central Spain on the Ebro River. Wines produced here are a great blend of ripe fruit and earthy flavours and Tempranillo grapes can be blended with Mazuelo, Graciano, Garnacha and Maturnana Tinta. Ribera del Duero is another Spanish wine region known for high quality Tempranillo, but rather than a blend, the wines in this region are usually entirely Tempranillo.

To share our love for Spanish red wine, here are a selective number of wines that are highly recommended and available from wine merchants in the UK:

Herederos 1808 Crianza D.O.C. Rioja 2012

In full, its name is actually Herederos de Perfecto Martinez 1808 Crianza. This wine is produced by the Martinez family, who began producing wines in Laguardina in the 16th century. All grapes are hand-picked and this wine was aged in American oak for 12 months, then bottle aged for a further six months before it is released.

Bodegas Campina Contadero Vinas Centenarias Crianza D.O. Toro 2011

In 2003, Bodegas Campina was formed by a collection of local vineyard owners who simply wanted to produce quality wines. Every vineyard that has been involved are each well established and have all been running for a minimum of 40 years, producing top quality fruit to create superior wines.
They employed top local winemaker Rosa Maria Zarza and because Rosa prefers to leave all the natural goodness in rather than filtering it out, there will be some sediment with this wine. It is certainly a full flavoured wine with the fruit, vanilla, oak and acidity all in balance with one another.

Juan Simon Organic Cartan Joven D.O. Navarra 2014

The producer of this wine is a pioneer in BIO viticulture in Navarra. Juan only produces two wines, each of which has very small quantities. This Cartan ‘Joven’ is a young, unoaked wine that consists of 50% of both Tempranillo and Garnacha and is a lovely natural wine with a very low sulphite contents.

Photo by 'Marlanne Perdomo' / License