TONG N°5 / Red Burgundy
TONG N°4 / Champagne
TONG N°3 / ¿El Futuro?
TONG N°2 / Terroir
TONG N°1 / Sauvignon Blanc
TONG N°4 / Champagne
TONG N°3 / ¿El Futuro?
TONG N°2 / Terroir
TONG N°1 / Sauvignon Blanc
© Millefeuille Press
TONG N°3
¿El Futuro?
For wine lovers who prefer finesse above concentration, the future of Spanish wine looks bright! The 1990s saw huge, concentrated wines made of a mix of international and Spanish grape varieties, principally Tempranillo and Garnacha. Spain had become the New World of Europe.
But another school of wine-making has slowly emerged. Its winemakers are preaching a return to indigenous, locally grown varieties and a wine-making style that focuses on finesse rather than concentration. For decades, these old varieties were wasted on cheap bulk wines.
We were struck by how Burgundian their red wines taste. In fact, these winemakers are using the same traditional red wine-making techniques as in Burgundy, and they are harvesting earlier than usual to retain “greenness” in their wines. Look out for Ribeira Sacra!
Content
A shot in the foot
The Spanish wine business and its way of thinking
by Frank Smulders MW
The story of Tempranillo
Why this grape is not suited to every region in Spain
by Pedro Ballesteros
Time for a legal shakeup
The obsolescence of Spanish wine laws
by Wim Vanleuven
My project in Valdeorras
Godello as a superstar grape
by Rafael Palacios
Ribeira Sacra, terroir for the taking
The new top region to watch!
by Dirk van der Niepoort
How to make Spanish red wine
About indigenous grape varieties and the move towards red Burgundy
by Raúl Pérez
The Spanish wine business and its way of thinking
by Frank Smulders MW
The story of Tempranillo
Why this grape is not suited to every region in Spain
by Pedro Ballesteros
Time for a legal shakeup
The obsolescence of Spanish wine laws
by Wim Vanleuven
My project in Valdeorras
Godello as a superstar grape
by Rafael Palacios
Ribeira Sacra, terroir for the taking
The new top region to watch!
by Dirk van der Niepoort
How to make Spanish red wine
About indigenous grape varieties and the move towards red Burgundy
by Raúl Pérez
Frank Smulders MW
Frank Smulders is the only Master of Wine in the Netherlands. After a career in the wine trade, he taught courses on wine and is currently setting up wine schools across Europe, with a special focus on Scandinavia. He is one of the driving forces behind the European Academy for Wine Education (EAWE). Frank has also worked as a consultant for Spanish wineries and cooperatives. He owns a wine broker agency specialised in Spanish and Italian wines.
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Frank Smulders is the only Master of Wine in the Netherlands. After a career in the wine trade, he taught courses on wine and is currently setting up wine schools across Europe, with a special focus on Scandinavia. He is one of the driving forces behind the European Academy for Wine Education (EAWE). Frank has also worked as a consultant for Spanish wineries and cooperatives. He owns a wine broker agency specialised in Spanish and Italian wines.
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Pedro Ballesteros
Pedro Ballesteros studied agronomical engineering in Spain, later obtaining a Masters in Viticulture and Oenology from the Universidad Politécnica in Madrid. He continued his wine studies on Rioja and Burgundy. He now works at the European Commission in Brussels, but his involvement in the wine world goes unabated. In 2006, he obtained the Wine and Spirit Education Trust Diploma and he is hard at work on his Master of Wine, having recently passed the theory and tasting examinations in just one round.
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Pedro Ballesteros studied agronomical engineering in Spain, later obtaining a Masters in Viticulture and Oenology from the Universidad Politécnica in Madrid. He continued his wine studies on Rioja and Burgundy. He now works at the European Commission in Brussels, but his involvement in the wine world goes unabated. In 2006, he obtained the Wine and Spirit Education Trust Diploma and he is hard at work on his Master of Wine, having recently passed the theory and tasting examinations in just one round.
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Wim Vanleuven
In a previous life Wim Vanleuven was a lawyer, who for two years practised at the bar in Barcelona. Fifteen years ago, he started his own wine business in Belgium, specialising in Spanish wines. “La Buena Vida” has grown and flourished, spurred on by the boom in new Spanish wines. Today he is one of Europe’s top wine traders with close links to Spain’s pioneer winegrowers.
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In a previous life Wim Vanleuven was a lawyer, who for two years practised at the bar in Barcelona. Fifteen years ago, he started his own wine business in Belgium, specialising in Spanish wines. “La Buena Vida” has grown and flourished, spurred on by the boom in new Spanish wines. Today he is one of Europe’s top wine traders with close links to Spain’s pioneer winegrowers.
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Rafael Palacios
Rafael Palacios is among Spain’s top producers. His wine “As Sortes”, made from the indigenous Godello white grape variety in the DO Valdeorras in Galicia, has been proclaimed Spain’s best white wine. His winery has only been around since 2004. Rafael is the brother of Alvaro Palacios, the brain behind L’Ermita of Priorat.
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Rafael Palacios is among Spain’s top producers. His wine “As Sortes”, made from the indigenous Godello white grape variety in the DO Valdeorras in Galicia, has been proclaimed Spain’s best white wine. His winery has only been around since 2004. Rafael is the brother of Alvaro Palacios, the brain behind L’Ermita of Priorat.
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Dirk van der Niepoort
Dirk van der Niepoort is not only among the world’s leading port producers, he is also a highly talented winemaker. Among the founding members of “The Douro Boys”, an iconic association of producers of still red wines in the Douro Valley, he has wine-making projects all over Europe. Vinho Verde in Portugal and Ribeira Sacra in Spain are just two examples.
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Dirk van der Niepoort is not only among the world’s leading port producers, he is also a highly talented winemaker. Among the founding members of “The Douro Boys”, an iconic association of producers of still red wines in the Douro Valley, he has wine-making projects all over Europe. Vinho Verde in Portugal and Ribeira Sacra in Spain are just two examples.
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Raúl Pérez
Raúl Pérez is one of Spain’s new generation of top winemakers. Last year, Robert Parker named him “Spain’s most original winemaker.” Raúl is a consulting winemaker for many small- and medium-sized wineries in the northwest of Spain. His family estate Castro Ventosa in Bierzo has been producing wine from the red Mencía grape since the 18th century. Raúl is making red and white wine in Asturias, Sierra de Gredos, Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra, Léon and Monterrei.
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Raúl Pérez is one of Spain’s new generation of top winemakers. Last year, Robert Parker named him “Spain’s most original winemaker.” Raúl is a consulting winemaker for many small- and medium-sized wineries in the northwest of Spain. His family estate Castro Ventosa in Bierzo has been producing wine from the red Mencía grape since the 18th century. Raúl is making red and white wine in Asturias, Sierra de Gredos, Bierzo, Ribeira Sacra, Léon and Monterrei.
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