Omar Khayyam Nishapur, ca. 1050-1123

1. Omar KhayyamNishapur, ca. 1050-1123 They say drinking wine is a sin. If those who love wine and love go to hell, paradise must be empty

2. Is this wine taste serious? Not much, but let us try to chat in a not too chaotic way. Languages? English, Italian?

3. Pedo-climatic conditions in Spain (1) Most of the country is a plateau with • Low organic matter content in the soil and low water capacity. • Low rainfall • High number of sunny hours • High difference of temperature day-night

4. Pedo-climatic conditions in Spain (2) Consequences: • Generally good a priori conditions for wine making • But does this mean that Spanish wine is always good? • Slope and orientation is less important than in France or most of Italy. • Difference of quality between years is smaller (but there is a difference)

5. Wine production in different countries (average 10 years) Which is the percentage of good wine?

6. The D.O.C. in Spain • Relatively few: 54?. (Italy >250) • Very few sub-denominations (Italy > 1200) • No sub-denominations defined by the grape variety. • They are all “D.O.C.G.” (controlled by INDO)

7. Reds minimum age minimum in oak barrel Crianza: 24 months 6 months Reserva 36 months 12 months Gran Reserva 60 months 24 months Some standard regulations Keywords for ageing Recently: “Roble”, often to indicate less than 6 months in wood

8. DOC Spagnole

9. The tongue and the basic tastes

10. Glasses • General rules: • Transparent, no carvings, slightly closed, leaving space to develop the smell, high enough to avoid the smell of your hand • Two main types: • Large • Small • A lot of shapes: tulip, AFNOR, “ballon”, Cognac • When to use a large glass? • Powerful wines not beyond the optimal age • Hint: pour a bit in a standard glass; if it improves after a while, decant and use a large glass

11. Smoothness, balance • A wine is balanced if • Sweet substances, alcohol (<14%), sugar = acid substances (fixed acidity) + bitter substances (polyphenoles) • Luca Maroni, Guida dei vini italiani, No specification of units • “Indice de souplesse”: • Alcohol (%vol)-[Fixed acidity(grammes/litre)+tanins (grammes/litre)] • < 5 : thin wines • 5 to 6-7 : “souples” (balanced?) • >6-7: Thick, fat • Emile Peynaud, Connaissance et travail du vin • Very simplified: what about effects of ageing, for example?

12. In general • Spanish reds are better than whites • Very few whites improve several years in the bottle • High alcohol content, full-bodied, “impegnativi”. • Some labels lie in the “opposite sense” (declaring less alcohol) • The smell of oak is often dominant • Reds are marketed rather late, when they start to be ready (tendency  ) • Examples: Vega Sicilia often sells the best wines when they are 20-25 years old. • Sweet wines, “olorosos”

13. Production structure • Big producers are dominant (tendency irregular) • Relatively few producers use 100% grapes from the own vineyards (tendency  ) • North generally better than south, • Often good quality-price ratio in the south for producers that have upgraded their technique.

14. Cultivation style • Most often stand-alone without trellis • Low density: 1000-1500 plants/ha (tendency )

15. The traditional n.1 D.O.C.: Rioja • Traditionally smooth and strongly wooded (American oak) • “Modern” style: more concentration and less wood • Rioja de cosechero: semi-carbonic fermentation

16. The traditional n.1 D.O.C.: Rioja • Three sub-D.O.C.: Rioja Alta, Rioja Alavesa (Basque country), Rioja Baja • Some white, traditionally very oaked. Also some fruity white.

17. The most fashionable D.O.C.:Ribera del Duero and Priorato Ribera del Duero Priorato • Full bodied reds • Much smaller production • Sometimes non justified prices

18. Ribera del Duero

19. Protos: The pioneer of Ribera del Duero

20. Tapas: The Iberic pork (Pata negra) • De bellota: It should have eaten only oak acorns • De recebo: fed with soja and acorn the last months • Cruzado: hybrid race

21. Tapas • Chorizo: • Specific spice: “pimentón” (most often mild) • Best if “pata negra” • Lomo: Similar but a single piece of meat (=“lonza”) • Cheese: most Spanish cheese is Manchego-like (Zamorano, Esgueva, Roncal, etc.) • Keywords: curado, semi, mezcla • Idiazabal: sheep, smoked. • Some mild cow cheese along the northwest coast • Cabrales: “blue”. How to distinguish craft and industrial. • Cecina: similar to Bresaola

22. The glass and the wine • Maximum level of filling: about 1/3 for the AFNOR glass. • Much less for larger glasses • Need of space to concentrate aromas • More than that makes oxygenation difficult

23. Why Spanish wine is not at the level of its potential quality? • Technical knowledge of producers. • Studies in oenology too recent • Too many people still saying “the good wine is the one from the farmer, without chemistry” • Grape varieties

24. Grape varieties: the ones to keep • Tempranillo = tinto fino (Ribera Duero) = Cencibel (Mancha) = Ull de llebre (Catalonia) ~ Tinta de Toro: Best results among national varieties. Medium-high body and a variety of aromas. • Good potential for reds: Garnacha (more fruity), Monastrell (Mourvèdre), Mazuelo, Graciano, Prieto picudo. • Interesting for whites: Albariño, Loureiro, Treixadura, Macabeo, Xarel.lo, Perellada, Verdejo (Verdicchio), Viura • Specific for sweet wines: Pedro Ximenez, Moscatel • French varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Sauvignon. Not much but growing. Interesting the coupage Tempranillo + Cabernet Sauvignon (+ Merlot).

25. Grape varieties: the ones to forget • They occupy most of the vineyard area in Spain • Often cultivated because they are resistant to draught • Airén: the largest area worldwide • Bobal, Pardillo, Zalema, Jaén • To avoid for table wine: • Palomino (good for Sherry) • Blanca Cayetana (good for brandy)

26. Sparkling wine: “cava”, a special D.O.C. • Most sparkling wine is “Método clásico” (Méthode Champenoise) • Cava: Mainly from Cataluña with a few exceptions

27. Jerez (Sherry) • Crianza en soleras • Velo de flor (mould) • Fino, manzanilla: relatively long aging in cask, but they should not be kept longtime

28. Jerez (2) • Fino, manzanilla: relatively long aging in cask, but they should not be kept longtime • Main difference: influence of the sea • Amontillado, oloroso: oxidative ageing