What is a rueda?
It will not have escaped the notice of wine aficionados that the emphasis on quality Spanish white wines has shifted over the last few years. Anyone over fifty years old will remember that when we asked for anything but the local white wine in a restaurant, the very limited variety at our disposal was invariably from Rioja. These Spanish wines tended to be anything up to 10 years old, heavy, woody-tasting, and a far cry from the from the young fruity whites to which we are now accustomed.
Gradually, and with total justification, the Penedés region took over. This involved – then as it does now – the less woody-tasting Catalan whites, characterised by the use of xarel.lo, macabeo, parellada, chardonnay, chenin blanc and sauvignon blanc grapes, which give a light wine with a strong fruity taste and often tending towards over-acidity.
In fact, the Miguel Torres bodegas have done more for Catalan wines than anyone else, epitomising the region’s willingness to import techniques, vines, and anything else you care to name, from areas outside Spain. Even allowing for the fact that Viña Sol is possibly one of the best-known whites in Spain, it still has a high level of reliability from one vintage to another, and a very acceptable price.
The USA and Sweden are the main importers of Penedés wines.
Recently, however another contender for The Best Spanish White Wine Region has come to the fore. This is Rueda, centred around the city of Valladolid, to the north-west of Madrid. The area between Burgos and Valladolid is famous for its outstanding reds from Ribera del Duero, but in the west Rueda rules supreme. Actually a Denominación de Origen standard was established in Rueda before even that of Ribera del Duero, and it was the first in Castille.
Wine and religion always go together, so it is not surprising to learn that as long ago as 1143 the Abbey of Santa María de Valbuena was selling wine. However it was not until 1597 that King Felipe II decided to regularise the trade, and he imposed taxes, limited the number of taverns, and brought in harsh punishments for anyone adulterating the local wine with wines from other areas. At that time, every stately home in the area produced and sold wine and for some reason the bodega was always built at the front of the mansion, since it was a source of pride to be able to sell wine.
As with practically any other wine-producing region in Europe, the wines were made for local consumption and sold at the bodega door, on tap, and at give-away prices. Gradually their fame spread outside the immediate area and slowly a demand was created for bottled wines that had to be carried by some form of transport to distant buyers. The forward-looking bodegas installed bottling lines, designed some fancy labels, and the rest, as they say, is history.
Rueda produces, with hardly any exceptions, solely white wines. The grape varieties are limited almost wholly to verdejo and sauvignon blanc, and the wines have become so popular outside Spain that 21% of the region’s production is exported to 30 countries. It is significant that even French wine producers (eg. Belondrade-Lurton, from Bordeaux) have recently taken to setting up bodegas in the area.
When looking for a bottle of white Rueda in your local wine shop, bear in mind that it is graded according to quality. The Rueda Superior is top of the pile, followed by Rueda, which tends to be younger, then comes Rueda Pálido and Rueda Dorado. These last two are what is known as generoso, being aged for 3-4 years in oak barrels and having a higher alcohol content and a darker colour, something like old sherry.
What you will realise quickly is that for everyday drinking Rueda is fine, and for a special occasion Rueda Superior. The prices bear this out.
Which brands to look for?
The Marqués de Riscal white Rueda is as good a place as any to start (the label actually says Herederos de…., ‘descendents of…’). This is an exceptional white whine, probably unlike anything you have tasted before, with a clean distinct flavour and enough body to satisfy anyone. The same producer also has a Marqués de Riscal Reserva Limousin 92, at about double the price, but this is a woody-tasting wine, and in my opinion not worth the extra.
Sanz is a large producer, and started making wines in 1870. All the wines are good, but look particularly for the Sanz Rueda Superior . They have a Sanz 95 that is quite good enough for everyday drinking.
Anyone familiar with Ribera del Duero reds will probably have tasted Ylleras, from the Los Curros bodega. In reality this is one of the very few reds which are produced in Rueda, and Ylleras is not a Duero wine and cannot boast its DO. Nevertheless Los Curros’ white Ruedas are true DO wines, and excellent. Try the Tierra Buena 95/96, often found as a restaurant house wine, and very fairly priced (not in the restaurant!).
Worth searching out are the wines of Angel Lorenzo Cachazo, this being a family business making almost exclusively Rueda whites, and exporting a very respectable fifty percent of its production. The flagship is the Lorenzo Cachazo 95/96. Costing marginally more, but worth it, is the Martivilli 94/95.
And don’t forget these wines are for drinking young. Unless they have been aged or fermented in wood, which is a specialist taste anyway, nothing will be gained by keeping them – quite the reverse.
