Galician wine is

Spanish wine Spanish wine () includes red, white, and sparkling wines produced throughout the country. Located on the Iberian Peninsula, Spain has over 1.2 million hectares (2.9 million acres) planted in wine grapes, making it the most widely pla ...

made in 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 ...

of Galicia in the northwest corner of

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. It includes wine made in the

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman '' provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...

A Coruña A Coruña (; es, La Coruña ; historical English: Corunna or The Groyne) is a city and municipality of Galicia, Spain. A Coruña is the most populated city in Galicia and the second most populated municipality in the autonomous community and s ...

, Ourense,

Pontevedra Pontevedra (, ) is a Spanish city in the north-west of the Iberian Peninsula. It is the capital of both the '' Comarca'' (County) and Province of Pontevedra, and of the Rías Baixas in Galicia. It is also the capital of its own municipality wh ...

and Lugo. Within Galicia are five '' Denominacións de Orixe'' (DO):

Monterrei Monterrei ( es, Monterrey, label= Castilian) is a municipality located in the Province of Ourense in the Galicia region of north-west Spain. Monterrey is well known for its Castle, built in the 10th century. The Mexican city of Monterrey was ...

Rías Baixas The Rías Baixas (Galician language, Galician for "Lower Rias") are a series of four estuarine inlets located on the southwestern coast of Galicia (Spain), Galicia, Spain. They are the Ría de Muros e Noia, the Ría de Arousa, the Ria de Ponteved ...

, Ribeira Sacra, Ribeiro and

Valdeorras Valdeorras is a comarca in the Galician Province of Ourense. The overall population of this local region is 25,500 (2019). Municipalities * O Barco de Valdeorras, capital of the comarca *O Bolo *Carballeda de Valdeorras *Larouco * Petín * A ...

. In recent years, the region has seen a resurgence in its wine industry led by the international acclaim being received by the Rías Baixas region for its Albariño wines.J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'' Third Edition pg 295-296, 451, 575, 723 Oxford University Press 2006

Climate and geography

Located along the Atlantic coast, Galicia has a very wet climate with average rainfall of more than 50 inches (1,300 mm) a year. The more than 2000 hours of sunshine that the region receives helps contribute to the high

humidity Humidity is the concentration of water vapor present in the air. Water vapor, the gaseous state of water, is generally invisible to the human eye. Humidity indicates the likelihood for precipitation, dew, or fog to be present. Humidity dep ...

of the area. The

Serra dos Ancares The Serra dos Ancares (Spanish: ''Sierra de los Ancares'', also known as ''Sierra de Ancares'') is a mountain range of the Galician Massif in north-west Spain, extending in a south-westerly direction from the western end of the Cantabrian Mountain ...

mountain range forms the border with Castile and León to the east, and the Miño river forms part of the region's border with

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...

to the south. The region's close proximity to Portugal and virtual isolation from the rest of Spain has had a marked influence on the style of wines from Galicia with many of them being closer in style to

Portuguese wine Portuguese wine was mostly introduced by the Romans and other ancient Mediterranean peoples who traded with local coastal populations, mainly in the South. In pre-Roman Gallaecia-Lusitania times, the native peoples only drank beer and were unfami ...

s than to other Spanish wines. The

vineyard soils The soil composition of vineyards is one of the most important viticultural considerations when planting grape vines. The soil supports the root structure of the vine and influences the drainage levels and amount of minerals and nutrients that the ...

in the region range from

granite Granite () is a coarse-grained ( phaneritic) intrusive igneous rock composed mostly of quartz, alkali feldspar, and plagioclase. It forms from magma with a high content of silica and alkali metal oxides that slowly cools and solidifies under ...

in the Rías Baixas area and most of Galicia to slate in the Valdeorras region.

History

In the 14th century, Galicia was exporting plant

cutting Cutting is the separation or opening of a physical object, into two or more portions, through the application of an acutely directed force. Implements commonly used for wikt:cut, cutting are the knife and saw, or in medicine and science the scal ...

s to other

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located entirel ...

an vineyards. In the 19th century, the entire region suffered from a depressed

economy An economy is an area of the production, distribution and trade, as well as consumption of goods and services. In general, it is defined as a social domain that emphasize the practices, discourses, and material expressions associated with the ...

and many vineyards shut down due to depopulation as workers moved away to find work. Galician harvest workers were a large part of the labor that developed the

terrace Terrace may refer to: Landforms and construction * Fluvial terrace, a natural, flat surface that borders and lies above the floodplain of a stream or river * Terrace, a street suffix * Terrace, the portion of a lot between the public sidewalk an ...

vineyards in the

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 o ...

Port wine Port wine (also known as vinho do Porto, , or simply port) is a Portuguese wine, Portuguese fortified wine produced in the Douro, Douro Valley of Norte, Portugal, northern Portugal. It is typically a sweetness of wine, sweet red wine, often ...

region. When Spain joined the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational political and economic union of member states that are located primarily in Europe. The union has a total area of and an estimated total population of about 447million. The EU has often been de ...

in 1986, funding assistance began reaching Galicia to help stimulate a resurgence in the wine industry.

Viticulture and wines

The region of Galicia has shown itself to be quite successful in harvesting grapes and regularly produces some of the highest yields in Europe, averaging 5.7

ton Ton is the name of any one of several units of measure. It has a long history and has acquired several meanings and uses. Mainly it describes units of weight. Confusion can arise because ''ton'' can mean * the long ton, which is 2,240 pounds ...

s per acre (100 hl/ ha). The majority of the area's vineyards are found to the south of the region in the provinces of Ourense and Pontevedra, though there are some significant plantings in Lugo to the east. The regions closer to the Miño river often produce blended wines of Albariño,

Loureira Loureira is a Portuguese parish, located in the municipality of Vila Verde. The population in 2021 was 1106 in an area of 1.87 km². {{Infobox Portuguese subdivision, official_name=Loureira, image_shield=, coordinates={{coord, 41.630, -8.427, ...

and Caiño blanca. More inland the white wines are often blends of

Torrontés Torrontés is a white grape variety, mostly produced and known in Argentine wine, producing fresh, aromatic wines with moderate acidity, smooth texture and mouthfeel as well as distinctive peach and apricot aromas on the nose.Robinson, Jancis '' ...

and

Treixadura Treixadura or Trajadura is white Portuguese wine grape variety grown primarily in the Vinho Verde wine region of northeast Portugal and the Galician wine regions of Ribeiro and Rías Baixas in Spain where the variety is known as ''Treixadura' ...

. There are also white wines dominated by the

Godello Godello is a white variety of wine grape grown in northwestern Spain, in particular in Galicia. The Gouveio found in northern Portugal is thought to be the same grape variety. The origins of Godello variety are located in the town of Godella ...

grape. The light red wines of the region are primarily made from the Mencía grape. Around 137 hectares (339 acres) of the

Southwest France wine South West France, or in French ''Sud-Ouest'', is a wine region in France covering several wine-producing areas situated respectively inland from, and south of, the wine region of Bordeaux.Camaraou noir (known in Galicia as ''Espadeiro'') is grown here and often blended with Mencía and

Caiño tinto Caíño tinto (also known as Borraçal in Portuguese) is a red Galician wine grape variety that is also grown in Portugal's Vinho Verde wine region where it is known as Borraçal. In Spain, it is a permitted variety in the '' Denominación de Ori ...

.J. Robinson, J. Harding and J. Vouillamoz ''Wine Grapes - A complete guide to 1,368 vine varieties, including their origins and flavours'' pgs 179-180, Allen Lane 2012

Wine regions

Monterrei

The Monterrei DO is found at the southern end of Galicia on the border with Portugal. The region was first granted provisional DO status in the early 1980s but lost the designation as Spanish authorities determined that the producers of Monterrei were not committed to upgrading their estates and improving wine quality. Spurred on by this event, the producers in Monterrei began modernizing their vineyards and wineries with the region regaining full DO status in 1994.T. Stevenson ''The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia'' Fifth Edition pgs 366-369 Dorling Kindersley (2011) The main wine grapes of Monterrei are

Alicante Alicante ( ca-valencia, Alacant) is a city and municipality in the Valencian Community, Spain. It is the capital of the province of Alicante and a historic Mediterranean port. The population of the city was 337,482 , the second-largest in t ...

, Doña blanca,

, Gran negro, Mencía, Mouratón and Palomino. The wine industry here is currently dominated by bulk wine production.

Rías Baixas

The Rias Baixas is the most well known region of Galicia and produces some of Spain's most sought after dry white wines based on the Albariño grape. While wines have been produced in this region for some time, exports of the wine to other areas of Europe didn't begin till 16th century and was kept at a steady pace till the

phylloxera epidemic The Great French Wine Blight was a severe blight of the mid-19th century that destroyed many of the vineyards in France and laid waste to the wine industry. It was caused by an aphid that originated in North America and was carried across the Atl ...

devastated the region's vineyards. At the turn of the 20th century many of the region's vineyards were replanted with low quality

hybrid Hybrid may refer to: Science * Hybrid (biology), an offspring resulting from cross-breeding ** Hybrid grape, grape varieties produced by cross-breeding two ''Vitis'' species ** Hybridity, the property of a hybrid plant which is a union of two dif ...

vines and some plantings of the

Sherry Sherry ( es, jerez ) is a fortified wine made from white grapes that are grown near the city of Jerez de la Frontera in Andalusia, Spain. Sherry is produced in a variety of styles made primarily from the Palomino grape, ranging from light versi ...

grape Palomino that didn't produce as well in the cooler climate of Rías Baixas. In the 1970s growers began to replant native varieties like Albariño. Throughout the region 12 grape varieties are permitted, including the red wine grapes of Mencía and

Espadeiro Espadeiro is a red Portuguese wine grape planted primarily in the Minho region for making Vinho Verde. It is also grown across the border, in Galicia (Spain) where it is used to make light bodied wines.J. Robinson ''Jancis Robinson's Wine Co ...

, but Albariño accounts for 90% of the region's production. The vineyard soils of the area are granite based and ideally situated for the damp

maritime climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

of the area. Despite the reputation for high yields in other parts of Galicia, Rías Baixas keeps the yield of its Albariño plantings low in order to produce concentrated fruity and fragrant wine. The wines are often a minimum

alcohol content Alcohol by volume (abbreviated as ABV, abv, or alc/vol) is a standard measure of how much alcohol (ethanol) is contained in a given volume of an alcoholic beverage (expressed as a volume percent). It is defined as the number of millilitres (mL) o ...

of 12% and are rarely produced in a style other than dry. Other grapes grown in Rías Baixas include Brancellao,

, Caiño blanca,

, Loureira Tinta, Sousón,

and

. Rías Baixas (DO) is the Galician DO that exports more bottles of wine.

Ribeira Sacra

The Ribeira Sacra was granted DO status in 1996 and for most of the late 20th century and early 2000s the majority of the wine produced here was made from the Mencía grape with limited white wine production coming from the Godello and Albariño grape. However, by the late 2000s, Palomino was the most widely planted grape in the region though Mencía still has a significant presence producing what wine expert

Tom Stevenson Tom Stevenson (born 1951) is a British wine writer and critic. Described by his colleagues as one of today's most prolific wine authors, Stevenson is regarded as the world's leading authority on Champagne.christies.coChristie’s Champagne Ma ...

calls "promising reds". Stevenson also notes that on the steep, terraced vineyards of Ribeira Sacra that Albariño has the potential to produce the most exciting wine. Other wine grapes grown in the Ribeira Sacra DO include Brancellao, Caiño tinto, Caiño blanca, Doña blanca, Espadeiro, Ferrón, Garnacha, Loureira, Loureira Tinta, Merenzao, Negrada, Sousón and Torrontés.

Ribeiro

The Ribeiro DO (which means "river banks" in Galician) is located along the Miño river and its

tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

. It received its DO status in 1957. In the 16th and 17th century, Ribeiro wine was often exported to

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

and

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

but suffered the same damages as Rías Baixas did during the phylloxera epidemic. However growers were quicker to turn away from the low quality hybrid plantings and back to the native Torrontés, Treixadura and Lado varieties. These grapes produce crisp, aromatic white wines. The area's red wine production is centered on the Garnacha Tintorera which produces dark colored but light bodied wines. Due to the similar climates and Atlantic influence, many of the wines of Ribeiro often share a style with the

Portuguese wines Portuguese wine was mostly introduced by the Romans and other ancient Mediterranean peoples who traded with local coastal populations, mainly in the South. In pre-Roman Gallaecia-Lusitania times, the native peoples only drank beer and were unfam ...

from the nearby

Vinho Verde Vinho Verde () (literally 'green wine') refers to Portuguese wine that originated in the historic Minho province in the far north of the country. The modern-day 'Vinho Verde' region, originally designated in 1908, includes the old Minho provi ...

region though wine expert Tom Stevenson notes that Ribeiro wines are often fruitier and more

aromatic In chemistry, aromaticity is a chemical property of cyclic ( ring-shaped), ''typically'' planar (flat) molecular structures with pi bonds in resonance (those containing delocalized electrons) that gives increased stability compared to satur ...

. Other grapes grown in the Ribeiro region include Albariño, Brancellao, Caiño tinto, Caiño blanca, Ferrón, Garnacha, Godello,

Jerez Jerez de la Frontera (), or simply Jerez (), is a Spanish city and municipality in the province of Cádiz in the autonomous community of Andalusia, in southwestern Spain, located midway between the Atlantic Ocean and the Cádiz Mountains. , the c ...

, Loureira, Mencía, Sousón

Tempranillo Tempranillo (also known as Ull de Llebre, Cencibel, Tinto Fino and Tinta del Pais in Spain, Aragonez or Tinta Roriz in Portugal, and several other synonyms elsewhere) is a black grape variety widely grown to make full-bodied red wines in its ...

, Torronté, Treixadura and

Viura Macabeo, also called Viura or Macabeu (, ), is a white variety of wine grape. It is widely grown in the Rioja region of northeastern Spain, the Cava producing areas south of Barcelona, and the Languedoc-Roussillon region of France. S ...

Valdeorras

The Valdeorras DO is the easternmost wine region of Galicia that is dominated by the red Garnacha Tintorera and the white Palomino grape. Many of the vineyards are planted in terraces on the steep slate hillsides that flank the Sil river. Prior to the phylloxera epidemic of the 19th century, the

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

Godello vine was heavily planted and is only just recently starting to make a comeback in the region. The Mencía grape is also starting to gain ground due to the fruity and easy drinking red wines that it produces. Other grapes grown in the Valdeorras region include Doña blanca, Godello, Gran negro, Lado, María Ardoña, Mencía, Merenzao and Palomino.

References

External links

Video about the Colleiteiros from RibeiroGalician Wines wholesale
{{Spanish wine regions Spanish wine Wine regions of Spain * Galicia (Spain)