Ribera del Duero, Toro, Rueda
On this wine tour we will get to know the wine regions and wines of Ribera del Duero, Toro and Rueda. We stay in high-quality hotels and enjoy the region’s delicacies such as water lamb in good restaurants. The trip is a dream come true for lovers of good food and wine! The beautiful old town of Valladolid is lively for a night out and you can taste excellent wines with local tapas in delightful wine bars.
The climatic conditions of Castilla y León, in which Ribera del Duero is located in the region of four provinces, are extreme: in winter it can be almost twenty degrees below zero at night, while in summer it is warm up to forty degrees. The diurnal variation can be tens of degrees. Low rainfall and 3,000 hours of sun per year quickly dry the barren landscape to yellow. The area is the second driest in Spain. So it’s no wonder that already at the time of Columbus, the region of Castilla y León was described with the phrase “nine months of winter, three months of hell”.
DO Ribera del Duero In the province of Castilla y León, the Ribera del Duero wine region, located around the Duero River, is well known and respected worldwide. Wine has been made in Ribera del Duero for several thousand years. In the 1970s, the region’s winemaking began to change, when the winery Pesquera began producing 100% Tempranillo-based, full-bodied and richly fruity red wines. Ribera del Duero got its own DO appellation in 1982. Ribera del Duero still enjoys growing popularity. The wines of Ribera del Duero are mainly made from Tempranillo (the grape is known locally as Tinto Fino
The DO Toro Toro area was spared from the ravages of the grape aphid at the end of the 19th century thanks to the sandy soil layer that protects the vineyards. As a result, at the beginning of the 20th century, wines from the region were exported in large quantities, e.g. to France. Wines from other wine regions in Spain were replaced with Wines from the Toro region. There are still very old vineyards in the Toro area. The Toro wine region received its designation of origin in 1987. The wine regions are located at an altitude of 620-750 meters above sea level. The red grapes of the region are Tinta de Toro (Tempranillo) and Garnacha (Grenache) and the white grapes allowed are Verdejo and Malvasía.
DO Rueda Wine has been produced in the Rueda region since the 11th century. The Rueda wine region received its designation of origin in 1980. This was preceded by the Marqués de Riscal winery’s large investments in the development of the region. The terrain is flat and is located at an altitude of 600-780 meters above sea level. The Duero River flows through the area in an east-west direction. In the immediate vicinity of the river, the soil is very calcareous (max 24%). The main cultivated grape is Verde already. In accordance with the designation of origin, Viura and Sauvignon Blanc are also cultivated, as well as Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Garnacha from the red grapes.