Spanish Temptations (Tentaciones españolas)

Today, Spain has more than 1.2 million hectares planted with grapes, equivalent to Funen, Zealand and Lolland-Falster being designated as wine regions in Denmark. This makes Spain the largest wine producer in the world in terms of area, but "only" the second largest producer after Italy.

Spain has a great variety in the grapes used for wine production. There are more than 400 different wine grapes, but 90% of the production is made from only 20 grapes – including the reds Tempranillo , Garnacha and Monastrell ; the white Albariño , Airén , Verdejo and Macabeo ; and finally the three cava grapes, namely Parellada , Xarel-lo and Macabeo .

The largest and best-known wine regions in Spain are Rioja and Ribera del Duero , both of which are known for their red wines produced on Tempranillo; Jumilla known for the production of Monastrell wines; Jerez for Sherry, Rias Baixas in Galicia for their dry white wines produced on Albariño and finally Catalonia which produces excellent Cava. In addition, slightly smaller regions such as Penedés and Priorat .

So yes, Spanish wine is today much more than the Rioja wine that all Danes bought in the seventies and eighties. A wine that was overcooked and with a very high alcohol percentage. Who doesn't remember Faustino?? In fact, in the eighties, Denmark was the largest importer of red Rioja wines.

Since then, production has been completely overhauled and the entire production apparatus renewed. Today, it is produced with a completely different softness and finesse, but also with power, concentration and pure fresh fruit. American oak is still used for aging the wines, which helps to give a recognizable slightly sweeter aroma and taste.