Valladolid Wines
Ribera del Duero
Is the main driving force of wine making in Castilla y León.
The longevity of its red wines, their complex tannic structure,
their strong fruit, and the contribution of the tempranillo grape
variety have all provided foundations on which the new wines of
La Ribera have been built. Although rosé wines, young reds
and reds briefly aged in oak are all produced on a comparatively
small scale, the wine categories where Ribera del Duero really
comes into its own are the reds designated as Crianza, Reserva
and Gran Reserva.
This wine growing and producing area gives rise to an extraordinary
mosaic of bodegas which make wines that express the characteristics
of La Ribera's particular combination of land and vines. The greatest
virtue of La Ribera reds is their long life - Crianza and Reserva
wines which can be kept for between six and ten years, depending
on the vintage. In exceptional years, they can be cellared for
much longer.
The Denominación de Origen (D.O.) covers an area at the
convergence of the four provinces of Valladolid, Burgos, Segovia
and Soria.
Cigales
In the southern part of the district of Tierra de Campos, the
landscape is dominated by large stretches of vines and undulating
hills which extend to the banks of the river Pisuerga. On the
outskirts of Valladolid, we find the Denominación de Origen
Cigales, which used to be famous for its claretes (dark rosés)
and is known today for its modern rosé and red wines. Cigales
is the head of the district and the town which gives its name
to this Designation of Origin.
The queen of Cigales wines is the red tempranillo grape variety.
This particular cépage, along with other white grape varieties,
is the basis for producing modern rosé wines. But the great
discovery of this district, known historically for its clarete
wines, has been its reds. These wines have burst onto the market
in perfect harmony with current trends: wines with colour, strong
aromatic potential and tannic structure. The tempranillo grape
of Cigales is not grown far from the Duero region, indeed the
river Pisuerga flows into the Duero a few kilometres downstream.
Today, Cigales is establishing itself as an important region for
modern young rosé wines, as well as promising ventures
into barrel-aged reds.
Rueda
This area produces two types of young white wines - both very
aromatic and produced from the verdejo and sauvignon blanc grape
varieties. The young verdejo wines have experienced a rare change,
and have gone from being white wines with character on the palate
and good ageing qualities to white wines with a full nose, which
are very aromatic. Cask-fermented white wines are produced every
year in this area, and for the last decade, sparkling wines based
on the verdejo grape variety have also been made.
Since the 2000 vintage, the Designación de Origen has also
included reds and rosé wines after the incorporation of
the vineyards and bodegas of the Asociación de Vinos de
la Tierra de Medina del Campo.
Valladolid guide