In theory, Spain should be not only the largest wine producer in the world, but the producer of some of the world’s finest wines. It is, after all, the most widely planted wine-producing nation and has more than 400 native grape varieties.

In theory, Spain should be not only the largest wine producer in the world, but the producer of some of the world’s finest wines. It is, after all, the most widely planted wine-producing nation and has more than 400 native grape varieties.

It also has a wide variety of favourable climates: though central Spain oscillates between scorching summers and fiercely freezing winters, Galicia, in the north-west, enjoys cool ocean breezes and is blessed with numerous rivers, making it one of the most fertile places in Europe. The Mediterranean affords a winning mix of warm temperatures and cooling breezes, while the Pyrenees protect the country’s northern central area befogging and drenching rain clouds.

And yet Spain is only the third largest producer of wine, after Italy and France, and ninth in worldwide consumption. And of its 400-plus grape varieties, 80 per cent of its national yield comes from only 20 of them.

Get Instant Access

Continue Reading

Register for free to read this article in full

REGISTER

Subscribe for unlimited access

SUBSCRIBE NOW

From just £37.50 quarterly

  Print copy of The Tablet delivered directly to your door.
  Complete access to all Tablet website content including all premium content.
  Access to the weekly digital copy of The Tablet.
  Full access to The Tablet’s archive – over 180 years of back issues.

Already a subscriber? Login