KEY TERMS ABOUT SPANISH WINES

Key Terms

In addition to being familiar with the above regions, there are also a few terms specific to Spanish wine you should know. First, you’ll likely see a “D.O.” somewhere on the label; it stands for Denominacion de Origen, and is Spain’s guarantee of quality. Wines that have DO on the label have been subject to approval from the government, from the vineyard to the final bottle.

Next, you’ll need to know the aging terms. Almost all Spanish wines are ready to drink upon release; that is because most of the better wines are aged at the winery, in both barrel and bottle. So, it is not uncommon to see a “new release” of a wine that has a vintage date of five years ago. Here are the terms:

Joven – wines that are “young”, and not required to spend any time aging in casks before release. These are inexpensive wines and ones that you’ll probably want to stay away from.

Crianza – the red wines spend a year in oak, and then another two years in bottle or tank, before release. White wines must be aged for a total of at least one year to be labeled Crianza. Both red and white Crianzas are the most easy to find, and there are many good values in this category.

Reserva – strong vintages will usually move a winery to age a wine a bit longer; for red Reservas, it is at least one year in oak and two more years in bottle before release.  White and rose reservas spend at least six months in oak and a total of two years aging (likely will include a year and a half of bottle aging).

Gran Reserva – only produced in the very best vintages, red Gran Reserva wines are aged for at least two years in oak, and then three more years in bottle. White and rose reservas require at least six months in oak, and four years’ aging total.