Navarra (DO)
Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) | |
Year established | 1933 |
---|---|
Country | Spain |
Sub-regions | Valdizarbe, Tierra Estella, Ribera Alta, Ribera Baja, Baja Montaña |
No. of vineyards | 10,774 hectares (26,623 acres) |
No. of wineries | 87 |
Wine produced | 511,437 hectolitres |
Comments | Data for 2016 / 2017 |
Navarra is a Spanish
The region used to be renowned only for its rosado wines but in recent years has been producing quality reds and whites as well.
History
The earliest historical data on grape growing and wine production in Navarra dates from the 2nd century BC, when the
).In the
Towards the end of the 18th century viticulture was the main agricultural activity of the region. In 1855 there was an outbreak of oidium which affected wine production, three years after a similar outbreak in the Bordeaux (France) region. However, in 1892, the phylloxera plague devastated the vineyards, destroying an estimated 98% of the 50,000 ha of vines planted at that time.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the vineyards were replanted by grafting onto New World rootstock. Wine cooperatives were formed and successfully increased production by exporting large quantities of wine in bulk.
During the 1980s private wineries and cooperatives began bottling and labelling quality wine. The statutes of the Denominación de Origen, which were originally approved in 1933, have been updated to reflect the shift of emphasis from bulk production to quality production.
Geography
The DOP is divided into 5 sub-zones, each one of which has a distinct identity and produces characteristic wines.
Valdizarbe
Tierra Estella
To the west of Valdizarbe,
Ribera Alta
The Ribera Alta sub-zone is centred on the town of Olite on the left bank of the river Ebro, above the lower reaches of the rivers Arga, Ega and Aragón, and covers 26 municipalities.
Baja Montaña
This sub-zone covers 22 municipalities and is located in the northeast of the DOP, on the middle reaches of the river Aragón.
Ribera Baja
The Ribera Baja sub-zone is in the south of Navarre and is the most important of the five in terms of area and number of wineries. It covers 14 different municipalities, all on a dry, sandy plain on the right bank of the river Ebro.
Climate
The climate in Navarra is continental (long, hot, dry summers and cold winters). The northern sub-zones have a dry continental climate with Atlantic influences and with only moderate heat during the period when the grapes are ripening, as the nights start to get cooler during the month of August.
Average rainfall in the DOP is 625 mm per year. In the areas at higher altitudes, there is the occasional risk of frost and of violent storms.
Authorised Grape Varieties
The authorised grape varieties are:
- Red: Pinot Noir
- White: Sauvignon Blanc
Most vines are trained along
References
- ^ "Denominación de Origen Protegida "Navarra"". www.mapa.gob.es. Retrieved 10 January 2020.