Agiorghitiko Chardonnay Vermentino Nero Spain La Mancha

The Agiorgitiko grape varietal is grown widely throughout Greece and certain other countries, and is prized for the fact it is highly heat resistant, and can thrive on even quite arid and infertile land. It has been cultivated for millennia in the Nemea region of the Peloponnese mountains, where it remains highly popular to this day. It is a grape varietal which can take on wide range of characteristics, from highly tannic and astringent to rather soft and rounded, and responds well to a variety of wine making techniques and methods. Typically, the Agiorgitiko grape varietal produces wines which are quite spicy, and hold plummy and dark fruit flavors It has been successfully blended with Cabernet Sauvignon, and is a popular grape varietal in many countries around the world.

Of all the white wine grape varietals, surely the one which has spread the furthest and is most widely appreciated is the Chardonnay. This green skinned grape is now grown all over the Old and New Worlds, from New Zealand to the Americas, from England to Chile, and is one of the first varietals people think of when considering white wine grapes. Perhaps this is because of its huge popularity which reached a peak in the 1990s, thanks to new technologies combining with traditional methods to bring the very best features out of the Chardonnay grape, and allow its unique qualities to shine through. Most fine Chardonnay wines use a process known as malolactic fermentation, wherein the malic acids in the grape juice are converted to lactic acids, allowing a creamier, buttery nature to come forward in the wine. No grape varietal is better suited to this process than Chardonnay, which manages to balance these silky, creamy notes with fresh white fruit flavors beautifully.

Ever since the Phoenicians and Romans brought their knowledge of vine cultivation to Spanish soils, the country's culture has grown alongside wine production, with wine being a vital part of Spanish identity and Spanish traditions. Each region of Spain has a wine quite distinct from the others, and it is produced by smallholders and families as much as it is by large companies and established wineries. From the relatively mild and lush regions of La Rioja to the arid plateaus that surround Madrid, grapes are grown in abundance for the now booming Spanish wine industry, and new laws and regulations have recently been put in place to keep the country's standards high. By combining traditional practices with modern technology, Spanish wineries are continuing to produce distinctive wines of great character, flavor and aroma, with the focus shifting in recent decades to quality over quantity.

La Mancha is the quintessential Spanish wine region. A vast plateau of arid earth, dotted with historic villages, Moorish towns and Roman cities, it encapsulates the variety of culture, the colour and spice, the spirit of old Spain. It happens to be not only the largest wine region in Spain, but also the largest in Europe, covering almost half of the enormous central Spanish community of Castilla La Mancha. Half a million acres of vineyards, spread across four provinces and one hundred and eighty two municipalities - it’s no wonder this is one of the most interesting and varied wine regions there is.

The Romans were the first ones to cultivate vines in this part of Spain, and since their time, wine production has never really stopped. That isn’t to say this is easy wine-growing country - the extreme dryness and intense heat (daytime temperatures regularly top forty degrees in the summer, and drop dramatically at night) present their own challenges, but the result is small yields of highly characterful grapes which range from classic, native varietals such as Tempranillo and Monastrell, to international blending grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. The local favorite wine is Airen, a dry, fresh red varietal, which is used in bulk production and for brandies.

While the majority of wine production in the region is for the bold, complex reds the country is famous for, there are also some wonderfully fresh and interesting white wines to come out of La Mancha. These include wines made from local varietals such as Verdejo and Torrontes.