Home to the world’s largest vineyard area, Spain boasts a winegrowing history that is ancient and discontinuous. Several events throughout its three millennia of viticulture have threatened the industry, including the Moorish conquest of Iberia, the phylloxera crisis, a devastating Civil War, and several decades under a fascist regime, during which winemaking customs lost favor to bulk production and cooperatives. Today, Spain’s languages, cultures, and food and wine traditions remain distinct—long after the country's unification in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.
Spain’s heritage styles—its deep-hued rosados, nutty rancios, and slowly aged gran reservas—are now joined by more contemporary aesthetics. While some growers have adapted to a modern palate, others hold to tradition. Others still seek to reimagine classic Spanish wines for the 21st century, reclaiming indigenous grape varieties and marrying innovation to ancestry. Born from these varied philosophical approaches is a Spanish wine industry equipped with the diversity and talent to capture new generations of consumers while safeguarding a long-cherished identity.
Anthropological studies have found trace evidence of Vitis vinifera in Spain dating as early as 3000 BCE. Fragments of vine wood and other vestiges of ancient grapes have been identified at three sites in Southern Spain. The introduction of viticulture to Iberia, however, is widely attributed to the Phoenicians, who arrived and established what would become Cádiz in today’s Andalucía approximately
Thanks, Rasmus! We will have this updated shortly.
Ruedo has very recently updated their Pliego including new grape varieties allowed.
Yes, this does need to be updated! We're working on it - stay tuned. But you are correct that the Compendium list is up to date.
Does the list of Vino de Pago producers need to be updated? Did Urbezo get added in 2024? It appears that the Compendium was updated but not the list in the expert guide.
Thanks, Jonathan!
Hey Michael! It is a recent change that Trepat is allowed for all styles of wine. The update is on Page 9 where the stipulation of Rosé only has been removed. The guide is updated to reflect that.
Regarding the use of red grapes in Cava, is it still accurate that “Trepat can only be vinified for rosado wines”? I was not able to find it in the compendium or Pliego.
Hey Sydney! It is Hacienda El Ternero. Feel free to read more about it in the discussion section of Rioja's Compendium entry.
Hello, the guide mentions that there is a single Rioja Estate physically located within Castile y Leon. What is it?
Hey Clementine! The biggest evidence for Phoenician viticulture is the Castillo de Doña Blanca, an ancient winery that includes a press that dates back to the 3rd century BCE. In regards to the existence of Vitis Vinifera here, the domestication of wild grapes happened between 7000-4000 BCE. Then around 3000 BCE, it spread to the Levant. This puts its arrival in Spain around 1000 BC and 500 BC, thanks to the Phoenicians. Therefore, it would be quite impossible for any Vitis vinifera to be here pre-Phoenician arrival.