A Hint About The Value List

Spain has always been one of my favorite wine producers. It suits my old world style, and there are cutting edge wine makers plying their trade with new exciting ideas. There are more acres of grapes in Spain than any other country, but their total wine production trails France and Italy.
The styles of Spain's wines are evolving. Once known for high alcohol reds and low acid whites, they now are working to entice the taste styles of the world wide market. Government regulations have created higher quality ratings, and the lesser appellations have been properly demoted. Once requisite long oak aging rules have been relaxed and now more fruit is accessible in these wines. While each controlled appellation (DO) has it’s own specific rules, generally they follow a common theme.
Crianza style wines are released in their third year typically, and have generally have about one year in oak. Crianza is the Spanish word for “breeding”, and wines that are released prior to two full years of aging carry the words “sin crianza” (without breeding) on their label. Riservas must be at least three years old and also require one year in oak. The Crianza style is generally more desirable in the American market, although Riservas are considered better wines. Try out a crianza rioja for an affordable interesting old world play.