Ribera del Duero is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) located in the country's northern

plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...

and is one of eleven 'quality wine' regions within the

autonomous community eu, autonomia erkidegoa ca, comunitat autònoma gl, comunidade autónoma oc, comunautat autonòma an, comunidat autonoma ast, comunidá autónoma , alt_name = , map = , category = Autonomous administra ...

Castile and León Castile and León ( es, Castilla y León ; ast-leo, Castiella y Llión ; gl, Castela e León ) is an autonomous community in northwestern Spain. It was created in 1983, eight years after the end of the Francoist regime, by the merging of the ...

. It is also one of several recognised wine-producing regions to be found along the course of the

Duero river The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part of ...

. The region is characterised by a largely flat, rocky terrain and is centred on the town of

Aranda de Duero Aranda de Duero is a city and municipality, capital of the Ribera del Duero comarca, in the south of the province of Burgos, in Castile and León, Spain. It has a population of roughly 33,000 people and lies on the River Duero. The closest in ...

, although the most famous vineyards surround Peñafiel and Roa de Duero to the west, where the regional regulatory council or ''Consejo Regulador'' for the ''denominación'' is based. Ribera del Duero was named Wine Region of the Year 2012 by ''

Wine Enthusiast Magazine ''Wine Enthusiast'' magazine is an American wine magazine published by Wine Enthusiast Companies in Valhalla, New York. Founded in 1979 by Adam and Sybil Strum, Wine Enthusiast Companies engages in the wine accessories, storage, information, educat ...

''.

History

Wine has been produced in the region for thousands of years, but

viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

as we know it probably arrived in the Ribera del Duero region with Benedictine monks from

Cluny Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon. The town grew up around the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny, founded by Duke William I of Aquitaine in 9 ...

in the

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The c ...

region of

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

in the twelfth century. Ribera del Duero wine making goes back over 2,000 years as evidenced by the 66-meter mosaic of

Bacchus In ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, myth, Dionysus (; grc, wikt:Διόνυσος, Διόνυσος ) is the god of the grape-harvest, winemaking, orchards and fruit, vegetation, fertility, insanity, ritual madness, religious ecstas ...

, the god of wine that was unearthed relatively recently at

Baños de Valdearados Baños de Valdearados is a municipality and town located in the province of Burgos,Baños de Valdeara ...

. The denominación de origen (D.O.) of Ribera del Duero was founded on 21 July 1982 by an organization of wine producers and growers who were determined to promote the quality of their wines and enforce regulatory standards. Reports that it was set to be upgraded to '' denominación de origen calificada'' (DOCa) status in 2008 proved to be unfounded and, as at 2011, it remains a DO and has no plans to change. Ribero del Duero wines are currently enjoying greater popularity, thanks largely to the considerable interest shown in the area by experienced growers from other regions.

Geography

The Ribera del Duero is located on the extensive, elevated northern plateau of the Iberian Peninsula. It occupies the southern plains of the

province of Burgos The Province of Burgos is a province of northern Spain, in the northeastern part of the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is bordered by the provinces of Palencia, Cantabria, Vizcaya, Álava, La Rioja, Soria, Segovia, and Valladolid. ...

, extends west into

Valladolid Valladolid () is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and de facto capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the province o ...

and includes parts of

Segovia Segovia ( , , ) is a city in the autonomous community of Castile and León, Spain. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the Province of Segovia. Segovia is in the Inner Plateau (''Meseta central''), near the northern slopes of th ...

and

Soria Soria () is a municipality and a Spanish city, located on the Douro river in the east of the autonomous community of Castile and León and capital of the province of Soria. Its population is 38,881 (INE, 2017), 43.7% of the provincial population. ...

provinces to the south and east, respectively. As its name suggests, the region follows the course of the

Duero The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part of ...

river for approximately 115 km upstream from Valladolid and is around 35 km at its widest. The region is located around the younger stretches of the river, which later passes through the nearby Toro and Rueda regions before traversing the famous

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

growing areas of

Douro The Douro (, , ; es, Duero ; la, Durius) is the highest-flow river of the Iberian Peninsula. It rises near Duruelo de la Sierra in Soria Province, central Spain, meanders south briefly then flows generally west through the north-west part of ...

and

Porto Porto or Oporto () is the second-largest city in Portugal, the capital of the Porto District, and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto city proper, which is the entire municipality of Porto, is small compared to its metropol ...

, where it drains into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

. Geologically,

tertiary Tertiary ( ) is a widely used but obsolete term for the geologic period from 66 million to 2.6 million years ago. The period began with the demise of the non-avian dinosaurs in the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event, at the start ...

sediments, consisting of gently lenticular layers of

silt Silt is granular material of a size between sand and clay and composed mostly of broken grains of quartz. Silt may occur as a soil (often mixed with sand or clay) or as sediment mixed in suspension with water. Silt usually has a floury feel when ...

y or

clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...

ey sand, alternate with layers of

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

marl Marl is an earthy material rich in carbonate minerals, clays, and silt. When hardened into rock, this becomes marlstone. It is formed in marine or freshwater environments, often through the activities of algae. Marl makes up the lower part o ...

and chalky

concretion A concretion is a hard, compact mass of matter formed by the precipitation of mineral cement within the spaces between particles, and is found in sedimentary rock or soil. Concretions are often ovoid or spherical in shape, although irregular ...

s. The Duero valley, formed during the

Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...

period, has a flat, rocky, gently undulating terrain, ranging from 911 m down to 750 m above sea level. The national highway N122 follows the river valley. The Ribera del Duero has moderate to low rainfall (450 mm per year) and is exposed to quite extreme climatic conditions; long, dry summers with temperatures of up to 40 °C are followed by hard winters during which temperatures often come close to freezing temperatures. There are also marked variations in temperature within each season. The climate is

continental Continental may refer to: Places * Continent, the major landmasses of Earth * Continental, Arizona, a small community in Pima County, Arizona, US * Continental, Ohio, a small town in Putnam County, US Arts and entertainment * ''Continental'' (al ...

and

Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...

, with more than 2,400 hours of annual sunlight. Vineyards occupy around 120 km² of the region, most of which are situated in the province of

Burgos Burgos () is a city in Spain located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is the capital and most populated municipality of the province of Burgos. Burgos is situated in the north of the Iberian Peninsula, on the confluence of t ...

, with around 5 km² in Valladolid and 6 km² in Soria.

Grapes

Wines produced in the Ribera del Duero DO derive almost exclusively from red grapes. The vast majority of production is dedicated to Tinto Fino (the local name for Tempranillo), the dominant red varietal in the northern half of the Spanish peninsula. Tinto Fino is often, but not always, complemented with

Cabernet Sauvignon Cabernet Sauvignon () is one of the world's most widely recognized red wine grape varieties. It is grown in nearly every major wine producing country among a diverse spectrum of climates from Australia and British Columbia, Canada to Lebanon' ...

Malbec Malbec () is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France, plantations of Malbec are n ...

and

Merlot Merlot is a dark blue–colored wine grape variety, that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines. The name ''Merlot'' is thought to be a diminutive of ''merle'', the French name for the blackbird, probably a reference to the ...

, although the famous Tinto Pesquera, grown by Alejandro Fernández in

Pesquera de Duero Pesquera is a town in the Ribera del Duero region that is noted for its red wine, balanced and fruity. It had a population of 562 at the 2001 census A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring, recording and calculating informatio ...

, is a 100% Tempranillo

varietal A varietal wine is a wine made primarily from a single named grape variety, and which typically displays the name of that variety on the wine label.The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition, 2000.winepros.com.au. ...

wine. The introduction of Pesquera's 100% Tinto Fino wine was, at the time, somewhat controversial, as the considered benchmark

Vega Sicilia Bodegas Vega Sicilia is a Spanish winery located in the Ribera del Duero '' Denominación de Origen'' in the Province of Valladolid, Castile and León (northern Spain). The winery was founded in 1864 by Don Eloy Lecanda y Chaves, who planted vario ...

wines traditionally blended Tinto Fino with such Bordeaux varietals as Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Malbec. The DOP's authorized red grapes are: Tinto Fino,

, and

Garnacha Tinta Grenache () or Garnacha () is one of the most widely planted red wine grape varieties in the world. Niels Lillelund: ''Rhône-Vinene'' p. 25, JP Bøger – JP/Politikens Forlagshus A/S, 2004. . It ripens late, so it needs hot, dry conditi ...

. The

Albillo Albillo or Albillo Real is a white Spanish wine grape varietyAlbillo Real
,

There are more than 300 wineries that belong to the D.O., some of them are: *

: Bodegas Casajús, Páramo de Corcos, Pago de los Capellanes, Bodegas TresPiedras, Dominio Basconcillos, Adrada Ecológica, Casado Alvides, Viña Sastre, Frutos Aragón, Ortega Fournier, Balbás, Linaje Garsea, García Figuero, Izquierdo, Félix Callejo, Cillar de Silos, Ismael Arroyo, Real Sitio Ventosilla, Martín Berdugo, Peñalba, Neo, Valduero, Imperiales, Pascual, Señorío de Nava, Pérez Pascuas, Virgen de la Asunción, Monte Aixa, Montegaredo, Pomar Viñedos, Torres de Anguix, Áster, López Cristóbal, Condado de Haza, Viña Solorca, Páramo de Guzmán, Andrés Matey, Gallego Zapatero, Viyuela, Valle de Monzón, Los Matucos, Prado de Olmedo, Muntra, Portia, San Mamés, Valderiz, S.A.T. San Pablo, Asenjo & Manso, Grandes Bodegas, Fuentenarro, Pagos del Rey, Viña Arnáiz, Santa Eulalia. *

, Abadia Retuerta, Pago de Carraovejas, Bodegas Protos, Sarmentero, Selección de Torres, Dehesa de los Canónigos, Comenge, Legaris, Dominio de Pingus, Postigo Vergel, Montebaco, Señorío de Bocos, Zifar, Tinto Pesquera, Yllera, Hacienda Monasterio, Viñedos del Jaro, Alión, Matarromera, Emilio Moro, Emina, Montecastro, Arzuaga Navarro, Valtravieso, Tamaral, Castillo de Peñafiel, Peñafalcón, Resalte, Pingón, Viña Mayor. *

: Valdeviñas. *

: Aldekoa.

Production

There are other similarities between Rioja and Ribera del Duero. Whereas the wines are quite distinctive as a result of significant differences in

terroir (, ; from ''terre'', "land") is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these conte ...

, both regions produce wines selected for long

aging Ageing ( BE) or aging ( AE) is the process of becoming older. The term refers mainly to humans, many other animals, and fungi, whereas for example, bacteria, perennial plants and some simple animals are potentially biologically immortal. In ...

with highly complex

vinification Winemaking or vinification is the production of wine, starting with the selection of the fruit, its fermentation into alcohol, and the bottling of the finished liquid. The history of wine-making stretches over millennia. The science of wine and w ...

procedures, producing intense, extremely long-lived wines emanating from largely limestone soils. Wines are classified as much for their longevity as their grape quality, and Ribera del Duero produces some extremely well-aging wines. The aging requirements for Ribera del Duero are the same used in Rioja. Wines labelled as "Crianza" must age two years with 12 months in oak. "Reserva" wines must be aged at least three years with at least 12 months in oak. The "Gran Reserva" labelled wines must spend 5 years aging prior to release, two being in oak. The town of Pesquera is particularly noted for its wines and the area around La Horra (another small town in the region) is respected by locals for its consistent quality. Viña Sastre is one of the region's more respected wine producers and the world-renowned

easily the most famous. Vega Sicilia's more eminent customers include

Prince Charles Charles III (Charles Philip Arthur George; born 14 November 1948) is King of the United Kingdom and the 14 other Commonwealth realms. He was the longest-serving heir apparent and Prince of Wales and, at age 73, became the oldest person to ...

of the British royal family, while

Alex Ferguson Sir Alexander Chapman Ferguson (born 31 December 1941) is a Scottish former football manager and player, best known for managing Manchester United from 1986 to 2013. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football managers of all time ...

's favourite wine is Pesquera. Other notable bodegas include, Dominio de Pingus, Bodegas Arzuaga Navarro, Bodegas Alion, and Hacienda Monasterio, all of which lie along

The Golden Mile, Spain The Golden Mile (''La Milla de Oro'') is a term for a stretch of land that lays home to a group of wineries in the province of Valladolid, Castilla y Leon, Spain. Geographically they lay along the Duero river starting at Tudela de Duero in the we ...

References

Notes References

External links