Monterrei (wine region)
Monterrei (Galician: mountain of the king) is a Spanish wine-growing region in the north-western region of Galicia and is located near the Portuguese border. The fortress of the same name still towers over the vineyards today. Around 660 hectares of planted vineyards at altitudes between 400 and 450 m lie on both sides of the Tamega river and its tributaries around Verin in the northwest of the province of Ourense . In the valley of the Tamega and its tributaries, mostly fertile alluvial land from the Miocene era predominates , while the slopes are deep, mostly heavy, and sometimes sandy
The main cultivation areas are divided into 2 sub-regions:
- Val de Monterrei in the Tamega valley and its tributaries with vineyards in the subdistricts of Castrelo do Val (with the municipalities of Castrelo do Val, Pepín, Nocedo), Monterrei (Albarellos, Infesta, Monterrei and Vilaza), Oimbra (Oimbra, Rabal, O Rosal and San Cibrao) and Verín (Abedes, Cabreiroa, Feces de Abaixo, Feces de Cima, Mandín, Mourazos, Pazos, Queizas, A Rasela, Tamagos, Tamaguelos, Tintores, Verín, Vilela and Vilamaior do Val).
- Ladeira de Monterrei on slopes and higher elevations in the subdistricts of Castrelo do Va Gondulfes and Servoi, Oimbra (As Chas and A Granxa), Monterrei (Flariz, Medeiros, Mixos, Estevesinos and Vences) and Verín (Queirugas).
The area has had DO status since November 25, 1994 and the supervisory authority has been in place since January 1996. In total, more than 3,000 hectares of land are approved for growing quality wine. The regulations are generally closely monitored. At present (as of 2005) there are 16 wineries and around 580 part-time winegrowers who work for these wineries.
See also the article Viticulture in Spain .
climate
Valdeorras is one of the warmest and driest areas in Galicia, with an Atlantic climate, which is strongly influenced by the continental interior climate. The annual average temperature is 11.5 ° C and the average rainfall is between 650 and 700 mm per year.
Wines
All types of wine are permitted within the wine-growing region. The white grape varieties lead with a total of over 60 percent. Internationally one tries to profit from the current fame of the white grape variety Godello , which had almost disappeared due to phylloxera . The sparkling wines of this rare variety were rediscovered in the Valdeorras area and are also an important factor here. Other white varieties are Treixadura , Doña Blanca , Monstruosa and Palomino .
The red wines are mainly made from the Mencía and Bastardo varieties and sometimes also blended with Garnacha , Gran Negro and Merenzao (also called María Ardoña).
As rootstock generally the variety is Rupestris de Lot used.
regulatory authority
Compliance with the production regulations is monitored by the local regulatory authority, Consejo Regulador.
- Consejo Regulador DO Monterrei
- Avda. Luis Espada, 89 bajo
- E 32600 Verin / Ourense
literature
- John Radford: The New Spain. A complete guide to contemporary Spanish Wine. Mitchell Beazley, London 1998, ISBN 1-85732-254-1 .
- Jan Read: Spain's Wines 2005/06. 7th, revised, updated edition. Hallwag im Gräfe und Unzer Verlag, Munich 2005, ISBN 3-7742-6962-9 .
- Jeremy Watson: The new & classical Wines of Spain. Montagud Editores, Barcelona 2002, ISBN 84-7212-087-2 .