Castilla

Castilla-La Mancha is an autonomous community of Spain. It is a large region which lies south and east of Madrid. The climate has strong continental influence, and altitude of between 1650ft and 2300 ft. Despite this, grapes still need to survive sizzling heat and lack of moisture during growing season. As a result only grape varieties which can tolerate such harsh conditions were traditionally planted here. Airen tops this list and is still the most common grape in Castilla-La Macha (and in fact all of Spain). However, it is not a particularly respected variety so plenty of producers have made the decision to broaden their planting varieties to include Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha, Monastrell and Syrah. These are used in red blends. It is home to nine DOs, including Europe's largest deliminated wine zone La Mancha. It also is home to eight Vino de Pago estates, including Domino de Valdepusa which was the first Vino de Pago.