Rest of Spain
2016 Gold: 4 Silver: 4 Bronze: 5 Commended: 11
2015 Gold: 5 Silver: 3 Bronze: 9 Commended: 14
If southern Spain ought to be able to do one thing, it’s to provide good value for money. And this was exactly the case here in 2016. The overall Gold count might have been down on last year’s record year, but it was still a better-than-average performance for these southern regions of España.
With the exception of our two medal-winning blancos (particularly the amazingly well-priced Acantus Sauvignon) the whites were (as usual) generally less impressive than the reds. But here, as well as a lot of wines with too much oak, alcohol and rusticity – which were swiftly removed – there were some real gems at knock-down prices. It was good to see.
FROM THE TASTING TEAMS
‘In Spanish they often say the wines have emotion, and when you taste these you can see that. They have a lot to say.’ Peter McDaid, Spring
‘Although the wine trade has fallen out of love with overtly oaky wines, there’s a lot of people that still enjoy them. You need to make concessions to these customers, and Spain’s not a bad place to look.’ Natasha Hughes MW, team leader
‘I found it a bit disappointing. They’ve stayed on this “rustico” style that for me is too warm, and not really harmonious. It’s not the kind of wine that you want to drink a second glass of.’ Xabier Álvarez-Valdés, Trangallán
“The wines wear their heart on their sleeves – you’ll feel strongly one way or the other.” Charlie Young, team leader
FOOTNOTE: Includes wines from Jumilla, Utiel-Requena, Castilla & Mallorca.