Castilla-La Mancha

Castile-La Mancha (Spanish: Castilla-La Mancha) in Spain is an autonomous community with the capital Toledo and covers 79,463 km². Together with Madrid and most of Castile-León, it forms the region of Castile, whose name goes back to the medieval kingdom of the same name. Castile-La Mancha is the successor to the historic region of New Castile and comprises the five provinces of Albacete, Ciudad Real, Cuenca, Guadalajara and Toledo. The area borders seven regions. Clockwise, these are Madrid to the north-west, Castile-León to the north, Aragon and Valenciana to the east, Murcia to the south-east, Andalusia to the south and Extremadura to the west. Together with Extremadura, Castile-La Mancha is part of the vast Meseta plateau landscape (see map at the bottom).

History

The origins of viticulture can be traced back to the 12th century, when these areas were conquered by the Christian population in the course of the Reconquista (reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula after Muslim conquerors from North Africa had subjugated the Iberian Peninsula in the early 8th century). However, viticulture is said to date back to the Roman era. After the discovery of America in 1492 by Christopher Columbus (1451-1506), the Spanish conquistadores planted vines from their homeland in the colonies of the New World. The Listán Prieto variety from Castilla-La Mancha became the progenitor of many so-called Criolla varieties in Central America and South America under the name Mission. Castile-La...