Spotlight on Spain: The Mediterranean Coast
📖 Our  spotlight on Spain continues with the journey down the Mediterranean coast that covers a wealth of terrains and varieties.
Mediterranean Coast key facts:
Spain’s Mediterranean Coast runs from Catalonia’s border with France, down through Valencia to Murcia.
As to be expected in Mediterranean areas, summers are warm and dry and winters mild. Elevation and distance shape the terroir and blends, from coastal Alella to mountainous Priorat. Heading south into the Levante, heat and water scarcity intensify, and quality regions tend to depend on altitude and cool nights.
Red grapes lead the way: Garnacha and Cariñena (Samsó) in Catalonia, Monastrell further south, and Bobal in Utiel-Requena. The key whites are Xarel·lo, Macabeo, Parellada and Garnacha Blanca, with Moscatel in Valencia and Alicante. International varieties appear mostly in higher, more sheltered sites.
Key appellations include Priorat DOCa, Montsant, Penedès, Empordà , Alella, Terra Alta and the region-wide DO Catalunya in Catalonia; Valencia, Utiel-Requena and Alicante further south; and Jumilla, Yecla and Bullas in Murcia. Most Cava is made here too, namely Penedès, although the DO spans several regions.
🔎 Did you know?
The famed region of Priorat, with its steep terraces of old Garnacha and Cariñena on slate, is one of only two Spanish appellations with DOCa status (DOQ in Catalan; the other being Rioja)
Priorat’s modern revival began at the end of the 1980s, when a handful of brave vintners set out to make serious wine in a near-abandoned corner of Catalonia.
One of the most iconic styles is Alicante’s Fondillón: dry-to-off-dry wine made from overripe Monastrell and aged in oak barrels for at least ten years.
🎓 Want to learn more? Visit Foods and Wines from Spain website, and if in Berlin, come to 'The New Mediterranean' masterclass on 24 November, where we will take a fresh look at the regions of this ancient sea and its resilient storied grapes.