- Rías Baixas (DO)
Rías Baixas "Denominación de Origen" (DO) is located in the province of Pontevedra and the south of the province of
A Coruña in the autonomous community of Galicia,Spain . It is renowned for its white wines made from theAlbariño grape variety.(In Galicia Rias Baixas is pronounced "Re-ass By-shass")
History
It is believed that the Albariño grape was introduced to the area in the 12th century by the
Cistercian monks of theMonastery of Armenteira .The sub-zones of "Rosal" and "Condado" have a long history of grape growing and wine production and have their own traditional styles. The "Salnés" sub-zone only recently began to produce Albariño wines, for local sales to bars and restaurants.
Rías Baixas acquired its official status as a "Denominación de Origen" (DO) in 1988. This replaced the earlier "Denominación Específica Albariño" status which had been granted in 1980. Its "Consejo Regulador" is based in the city of
Pontevedra . [http://www.doriasbaixas.com/es/cregulador_hist.php]Geography
The DO is divided into five sub-zones, four of them in the province of
Pontevedra and one in the south of the province ofA Coruña .Val do Salnés
"Val do Salnés" is located on the lower reaches of the river
Umia and centred around the town ofCambados . The landscape is of low undulating hills and the vineyards are planted both on the slopes and on the flat valley floors. The soil is generally rocky and alluvial.O Rosal
"O Rosal" is located further south, along the Portuguese frontier in the basin of the river
Miño and extends inwards towards the town ofTui . The vineyards here are planted on terraces on the banks of the Miño. The soils are alluvial.Condado do Tea
"Condado do Tea", in the west, extends westwards from Tui along the Miño valley up to the neighbouring
Ribeiro (DO) . The landscape is more abrupt and consists of several small river valleys. The soils are granite and slate based.outomaior
The "Soutomaior" sub-zone was incorporated into the Denominación de Origen in 1996 and is located just south of the city of
Pontevedra . The soils are light and sandy, and covered with granite.Ribera de Ulla
The "Ribera de Ulla" sub-zone, to the north of Pontevedra was incorporated recently in 2000. The soils are mainly alluvial.
Climate
The climate is Atlantic, with wet winters and sea fog. In general rainfall is high and the temperatures mild. In general, maximum temperatures in summer rarely usually exceed 30ºC and only drop to 0ºC in December and January.
The coldest areas are Ribera do Ulla and Val do Salnés due to their proximity to the coast. The warmest is Condado do Tea where temperaturas in summer sometimos approach 40ºC, but the winters are cold with frequent frosts and rainfall of over 2,000 mm a year.
Strong winds can occasionally cause problems for the vineyards, especially those located on the west face of the coast. Frosts, hailstones and summer heat can also cause complications.
Grapes
The regulatory Council ("Consejo Regulador") of the Rias Baixas DO currently authorises twelve different grape varieties, though Albariño represents over 90% of all vines planted.
*Authorised white grapes:Albariño ,Loureira Blanca ,Treixadura ,Caiño Blanca ,Torrontés andGodello
*Authorised red varieties:Caiño Tinto ,Espadeiro ,Loureira Tinta ,Sousón ,Mencía andBrancellao The vines are trained along granite posts (called "parrales") and wires so as to protect them from humidity and to maximise their exposure to the sun in summer.
Over 90% of the wines produced are white, predominantly using the Albariño grape variety.
ee also
*
Galician wine Gallery
References
*http://www.winesfromspain.com
*http://www.doriasbaixas.com
*http://www.riasbaixaswines.com
* [http://www.castromartin.com/ Wine Producers]
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