Sparkling wine in the Spanish DO area Rueda; see there.
The DO area in Spain named after the town of Rueda (Rad) is located northwest of Madrid in the heart of the Castilla y León region. It was classified as a DO area in 1980 for only white wines at that time. Characteristic are the hot, dry summers and the cold long winters. The vineyards cover almost 20,000 hectares of vines in 74 municipalities, which have more than doubled within 10 years. The limestone soil consists largely of clayey alluvium mixed with gravel terraces, which, in addition to the continental climate with cold winters and short hot summers, promotes the fruitiness and fresh acidity of the wines. The area around the capital Valladolid accounts for the largest part of the region. Huge cornfields characterise the flat landscape, which is why it is also called the "bread basket of...
The glossary is a monumental achievement and one of the most important contributions to wine knowledge. Of all the encyclopaedias I use on the subject of wine, it is by far the most important. That was the case ten years ago and it hasn't changed since.
Andreas Essl
Autor, Modena