Spanish wine : The legendary Sherry wine and others

Mention the word "Sherry" to a group of wine lovers, and you will see the eyes light up. Sherry has been Spain's contribution to the wine world; and there are a lot many varietals out there in the Spanish vineyards that have brought joy to the large community of lovers of Bacchus. Spanish wines have now become synonymous with exotica and class.

There are almost forty clearly defined regions where the art of viticulture is practiced in Spain. Each region, carved out under a well regulated - Denominacion de Origen (DO) - system, is choc-a-bloc with Spanish wineries, or "Bodegas". The vintners, known as "Bodegueros" in local lingo, follow traditional as well as modern processes of wine-making. The huge clay pots - "tinajas" - in which fermenting and
ageing is carried out, sit cheek-by-jowl with stainless steel vats with the facility to control temperature, so that the fermentation proceeds at an even keel.

The home of the legendary Sherry wine is Jerez. The best sherries are made from the Palomino and Pedro Ximenez (PX) grapes. That exotic tang to the sherry wine comes due to a special yeast growth - called the "flor" - that is added while the wine is being aged in loosely stoppered casks. At the end of the ageing process, addition of alcohol eliminates the yeast. The aged wine is then moved to a tier of oak casks called the "Solera". It is here that old wine is gradually mixed with the freshly produced wine. The end product that finally comes off the last solera cask is bottled. This continuous mixing process is the reason why Sherry is not dated according to vintage.

Dry sherries such as Fino, Manzanilla, and Amontillado, and sweet sherries like Oloroso have a huge fan following.

The fine red Spanish wines from the region of Rioja have been the toast of quite a few generations. There are three broad zones within Rioja - the Rioja Alta, the Rioja Alavesa and the Rioja Baja. The light Crianzas and Reservas are grown here. The Gran Reservas varietal gets the longest ageing of all, usually in American oak.

The Priorato and Somontano regions along the Mediterranean coast have recently come in the limelight due to their Clos Mogador and Clos Erasmus varietals.

The wine Moghul of Spain - Migual Torres - operates his company, the Torres, from the vast estates of the Penedes region. The sparklingCava and the red Gran Reserva, besides the Sangre de Toro come from their vineyards.

When enjoying Spanish wines, it is always a good idea to get to understand and enjoy their local cuisine, too. The foods that best pair with wines from Spain are most likely to originate from that country as well!

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