The region has previously been focused on bulk wine but has turned more towards high quality and you find really good value here. The soils are dry, there is little to no rain and the vines therefore have to dig deep to get the water. The vineyards are located around 700m in elevation, the winters here are cold and the summers hot resulting in big diurnals with 20 degrees difference in temperatures and from up to +45 degrees in the summer down to -1 degrees in the winter. Jumilla together with Yecla is mostly famous for its use of deep concentrated monastrell-based wines with a deep colour, often described with a gamey character. In terms of wines specific for the region you Fondillon stands out which is a sweet wine with hundred year history which is made from a selection of the best overripe Monastrell grapes in a solera style aging the wine for 10 years. You will find the Bodegas E Mendoza, Franscico Gomez, Volver and El Seque mentioned in this map in this region that are on the recommended map in the bottom of this post. The DO is mainly divided in two areas with the east marine area around Denia and Calpe called La Marina and the more inland section around Villena and Pinoso which is called Vinalopo because of the river that runs through it. In Alicante DO 22% of the wines are white, 7% rosé and 68% red and it is mostly for domestic use. Alicante Bouschet is often called garnacha tintorera and was a crossing of Petit Bouschet and Garnacha created in France in France by Henri Bouchet in 1866 and the Alicante-name is confusing with its origin but also the fact that it is grown a lot in Alentejo, Portugal.

However nowadays more grapes have been authorized and you will now also find several french varieties as well as Garnacha and Tempranillo and over two thousand wine producers. Alicante DOĪlicante became a DO in 1957 and at that time only 4 grapes were allowed which were monastrell, alicante bouschet (Garnacha tintorera), Bobal and Moscatel de Alejandria. The DO’s of Jumilla and Yecla have older vines resulting in a smaller production with higher overall quality. In terms of quantity Valencia DO produces the grand majority of wine with about 50% of the overall production and 6200 different vineyards followed by Utiel-Requena standing for another 25% of the volume produced but here the average size per vineyard is a lot smaller resulting in a higher quality of wine as a generalisation. One of the most important grapes in the region is Monastrell (Mourvedre) with Jumilla and Yecla in as the more famous regions and the red Bobal in Utiel-Requena as the main quality producing regions while the quality of other DO’s could be a little hit and miss. There is a lot of quality wine produced and also 10+ Michelin starred-restaurants in the region making for a lovely wine trip even though the area is mostly associated with beaches, paella and sunshine.

This map shows the DOs of the Southeast part of Spain which covers parts of the La Mancha area stretching around Alicante and Valencia as well as Murcia. However, great quality wine is produced all over Spain and some of these regions are close to the very most popular tourist spots there (albeit not for wine-tourism).

When thinking about Spanish wines it is often associated with Rioja, Ribera del Duero, Galicia and other established regions.

If you are interested in reading a specific post about Monastrell-grape which is typical from this region please check out our Monastrell (Mourvedre)-page.

Spain wine maps