Vinos de la Tierra de Castilla

In recent years the number of regions in Spain using the Vinos de la Tierra denomination has grown dramatically. Currently there are some 31 such regions. The concept is similar to the Vins de Pays of France and, according to Spanish law, is seen as sort of transitional term for areas that can, after 5 years, apply for Denominación de Origen status. However, many wineries in Vinos de la Tierra areas have relished the greater freedom than exists under the D.O. system to produce grapes and wines as they wish. The result is wines that are more innovative and exciting than those of D.O.s.

Once such region is the Vinos de la Tierra de Castilla. This region is located in central Spain, the Spain of Don Quixote, noted for its hot, arid plains. The V. de la T. de Castilla was formed in 1999 to take in those areas outside of the several D.O.s in the area. The region as a whole has 600,000 hectares (1.48 million acres) of vineyards, which represents nearly 6% of the world's vineyards.

In a recent tasting done by Mi Vino magazine (June 2005 - edition nº 98) some 260 wines from the V. de la T. de Castilla were sampled. Their list of the most outstanding were:

Aresan Nueve Meses 2002
Ego Primus 2003
Gran Calzadilla 2000
La Estacada Syrah 2003
Pago del Alma Tempranillo 2002
Quercus 2002