In my classes, I always stress the huge gap that exists between Spanish red wines and white wines. For several years, I’ve been able to use a fun example to illustrate that point.  The most expensive red wine in Spain is Pingus from Ribera del Duero, which has a theoretical price of 600 euros, but in reality is seems to be much higher. Until recently. the most expensive still white wine in Spain was Chivite Coleccion 125 Barrel-fermented Chardonnay from Navarra at only about 50 euros!   I would venture to say no other country had such a disparity between the colors!

Times are changing and my example has been ruined!
Last year, Bodegas Enate from Somontano, released small quantities of a barrel fermented Chardonnay called UNO at the astronomical price of 290€!  I’m not sure how it’s selling here in Spain, but I spoke to a wine merchant friend in Germany and he sold his whole small allotment!  I’ve only tasted the wine once…when it was first released….I was not impressed and it seemed to me to be a ridiculous price for such a wine, but I remain open to changing my mind.  It is receiving high ratings amongst some critics, but I’m not sure how much of that is just hype. 
Nefarious market forces are at work here in Spain!

The above is a negative example of the changing face of whites, but luckily there are many good ones.

Spanish whites have typically offered fresh, clean, enjoyable wines at great prices.  Over the past few years, we’ve seen many attempts to make more complex, age-worthy whites.  There’s been some really interesting oaked whites coming out of Rueda, Galicia, Navarra, and Cataluña especially.  Unfortunately there have also been a lot of over-oaked whites with all the freshness and fruit killed off.  The 2003 vintage was a particularly bad one for many whites I had enjoyed previously.  Over-oaking seems to be a universal problem when the pendulum swings towards making more complex whites…hopefully we will see the pendulum swing back to a more subtle oak influence.

It is challenging to make a complex, balanced white in Spain’s climate…the regions mentioned above have learned to exploit their climate and terroir to the max…this in combination with the right choice of grape.  The Verdejo and Godello grapes in particular seem to have tremendous potential that is slowly being developed.  No doubt the Albariño grape has the same potential, but I have been greatly under whelmed by the offerings in the last couple of years.  There is also exciting potential in foreign grapes such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Gewürztraminer and many more.

My next post will rate one of the top new whites in Spain.  This wine represents a profound change in style and substance, unlike the Uno, which only represents a profound change in price! 
The wine is As Sortes and is made in Galicia by Rafel Palacios of the Palacios wine dynasty.  It is without a doubt the most complex Spanish white I have tasted.   It is also a difficult wine, one that can be hard for drinkers of casual whites to appreciate.  But at only 25 euros a bottle, even the doubters can give the incredible value As Sortes a try!
The As Sortes is pictured above with Belondrade y Lurton 2005, one of the early pioneers in Spanish whites.  Unfortunately since the over-ripe 2003 version, I have found these wines over-oaked and a little heavy….tiring to drink.

Luckily, despite some changes, Spain will remain the best country in the world for inexpensive, high quality un-oaked whites….is there anything better than a crisp, citric and herbal Verdejo from Rueda for 5€ a bottle?