What to know before buying Alicante Wines

 

History of Alicante Wine

The wines of Alicante enjoy a great historical tradition and are surrounded by great legends and fables. It was the Iberians who began to make wine for family consumption, and the vines grew wild. It was the Phoenicians, from 500 BC, those who introduced the vine, and the Romans who began to cultivate it more intensively.

During the Middle Ages there are few references to Alicante wine, although there are works of Arab poets who sing in their verses the excellence of those wines. It was not until the XV-XVI centuries that the first documents were found. Fernando el Católico prohibits the sale in Alicante of wines from other lands, but the real boom begins in the 19th century, when phylloxera sweeps the vineyards of France and Alicante wine exports grow spectacularly.

In the year 1932 they obtain the Denomination of Origin, one of the first of Spain. At present, the aim is to organize the sector, to combine production and to encourage the constant improvement of the quality of the wines.

 

Characteristics of the Wines of Alicante

The wine area of Alicante wines is divided into two sub-areas: the Marina, on the north coast of Alicante, and Vinalopó, which borders on Castilla La-Mancha and Murcia. It covers an area of more than 14,000 hectares and has 60 registered wineries.

The soils are sandy-loamy and sandy, suitable, therefore, for the cultivation of the vine. Its high porosity and permeability facilitate drainage and prevent water retention. The climate is Mediterranean with continental influence the more inland. Rainfall is scarce.

From the diversity of climates, regions and grape varieties are born many types of Alicante wine, let’s say one for each type of consumer. The most commonly used grape varieties are Monastrell, Moscatel de Alejandría and Alicante Bouschet.

As for the types of wine we can distinguish:

– White: In addition to the inimitable wines made with the Muscat of Alexandria, wines with Chardonnay or Sauvignon Blanc are also made, more fruity and fresh.

– Red: The most important and characteristic is the wine made with Monastrell, young or old. Other wines of Alicante are made with Petit Verdot, Syrah or Cabernet Sauvignon.

– Rosé: Almost always made from Monastrell grapes. They are wines of a raspberry color, with good structure and body but light at the time of drinking.

– Sweet wines: with great prestige for centuries, they are very appropriate to enjoy with a great number of dishes of the Mediterranean gastronomy, not forgetting the typical sweets, such as puff pastry, nougat, etc.

– Liquor wines: known as Mistelas, Alicante has specialized in the elaboration of these wines

– Sparkling wines: this is the latest addition to the vineyard of Alicante. Although of recent creation, they are giving magnificent results, always starting from a raw material of first quality

– Fondillón de Alicante: It is a unique wine in all its facets. Neither dry nor sweet, it is of a great aromatic intensity and powerful in the mouth, of great balance in spite of its long aging in wooden barrels. It is very characteristic its amber or mahogany color with golden layers of medium layer.

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