The revolution that has taken place in the Spanish white wine scene is one of the most dramatic changes to have occurred in the country's wine industry. Until (relatively) recently, the engine for Spanish still wine exports was red Rioja, and to a much lesser extent, Ribera del Duero. White wine production – excluding Sherry and Cava – was largely exported as bulk produce. The bottled still whites that were exported – white Rioja being a classic example – were often produced in a style that would be a complete anathema to today's consumers: Oxidised and subject to long periods of barrel-ageing. There were notable exceptions: Torres, for example, has been successfully marketing its Viña Sol/Esmeralda brands across the globe for decades, but such wines were few and far between.
However, the last 15 years have seen sustained growth in the production and export of still white wines, with fresh, unoaked styles such as Rueda and Galicia’s Albariño making significant inroads into markets as diverse as the US, Western Europe and Asia.
Rueda beginnings
Historically, the first signs of an interest in modern white production occurred in the 1970s, when Marqués de Riscal invested in the now-important Rueda region. Made largely from the Verdejo grape – essentially Spain’s answer to Sauvignon Blanc – Rueda wines were classically vinified and fortified like Sherry, until Riscal revolutionised the local winemaking by investing in vineyards and changing production methods.
Yet interest in exporting and expanding production in Rueda didn't really occur until the 1990s, according to Marqués de Riscal’s marketing director Ramón Román. “Spain’s association as a red wine country, in addition to the relatively recent technological advances and progress in white wine making, forestalled our entry into this segment,” says Román. “We didn't work on promoting our wines abroad until the ‘90s, which did initially put us at a disadvantage in comparison to other white wine regions.” It was the same story in Galicia, whose whites were consumed quietly and largely domestically until the end of the 20th century.
It is during this period that a younger generation of post-Franco winemakers brought modern techniques and a more international outlook to Spanish whites. Subsequently, interest, or more accurately renewed interest, in white production and exporting spread, concentrated in the regions of Rueda in Castilla y Leon, Rias Baixas, Valdeorras and more recently Ribeira Sacra in Galicia, as well as Penedes, Somontano and Costers del Segre in Catalunya.
Godello, a native Galician grape, is a case in point. At one time extremely prolific in northern Spain, by the 1970s much of it had been ripped out in favour of Sherry’s Palomino. However, inspired by the success of Albariño, the grape was replanted in the 1980s, initially led by the producer Godeval. Then the wine bureaucracies started to take note. “Until the last few years, no wine body (Consejo) gave any aid to wineries to help them promote their white wines,” says Marta Sertaje Nogueira of the A Coroa winery in Valdeorras.
From crisis, opportunity
All these factors undoubtedly encouraged the proliferation of new labels and production increases across the key regions. But the major catalyst, as Simon Field MW, Berry Bros & Rudd’s Spanish wine buyer emphasises, was the collapse of the Spanish economy. “Paradoxically, the parlous economic situation in Spain has been positive for growth, necessitating the need to search out new markets,” says Field. José Pizarro, owner of the successful Pizarro restaurant group in London, agrees: “Madrid’s on-trade used to be a major centre of demand for Galician whites for example, before the crisis,” he notes.
As a result, leading Spanish white wine brands are now a fixture across the world; currently, the main drivers of export growth remain Galicia and Rueda. Rafael del Rey, director general at the Spanish Wine Market Observatory explains the key facts: “White wines have increased their export market share significantly since 2000, accounting for 34.7% of total exports in 2013.” However, Rey adds that in volume terms, Portugal remains the number one market.
The US is now Spain’s third-biggest export market and, particularly for Galician producers, has shown growth and promise. “We have seen exceptional growth in US sales,” says A Coroa’s Nogueira. “We have been helped by the positive coverage of our wines in the media,” she adds. Their timing could not have been more perfect; as consumers embrace the paradigm of clean, fruit-driven, aromatic white wines, of a type that Spain can now offer in abundance. “We now typically have anywhere between 10 to 20 Spanish whites on the menu – it’s easy to get guests to try Galician wines when drawing reference to comparable whites from, say, Sancerre or Chablis,” says Thomas Pastuszak, wine director at The NoMad hotel, New York.
Albariño has enjoyed unparalleled success in the American market, so much so that wine giant E. & J. Gallo has undertaken a joint venture with major producer Martin Códax to increase exports into the US. “The grape has become a major brand in itself,” says Pastuszak. Domestic producers are also getting in on the act – Albariño plantings have increased in California over the past five years and producer Marimar Torres now sells a brand, to cite one example.
Overall, exports from the Rías Baixas region, the grape’s stronghold, reached over 5m L in 2013. The trend has been for upward growth since 2000. But its success isn’t simply a Western phenomenon. Consumers in markets like Australia are also becoming increasingly familiar with the grape. “In the past, when Australians had a non-local white wine, they would usually select an Italian Pinot Grigio. Those same consumers are now happy to try something new, and Spanish Albariño is at the top of their list,” says Amanda Yallop, head sommelier at Sydney's Quay restaurant. Imports from Galicia, in line with the global picture, are growing in Australia.
Germany and Holland also remain key markets for Spanish producers, Rey emphasizes, particularly for the Rueda community, who exported approximately over 3m bottles to the Netherlands and 2.6m to Germany last year.
Switzerland, Belgium and Russia had also shown good growth. Spanish whites have also made some headway in Asia, including in urban China where the white market was traditionally minute. “We are making progress in China, with sales improving over the past five years,” says Ignacio Prieto Pariente of Rueda firm Jose Pariente. Nonetheless, the key thirst remains for Spanish bulk wine, although 144,380 bottles of Rueda were imported in 2013, compared to just over 1,500 in 2005.
Pricing of Spanish white has, for the most part, remained relatively stable and competitive. The vast majority are available in European retail for €12.00 ($13.50) to €20.00. Rueda in particular has a very mass-market friendly price, usually sold at €10.00 or less. Godello tends to fetch a slightly higher price than Albariño, with some of the Chardonnays from Penedès and Catalunya fetching prices of €30.00 to €40.00. In volume terms, the white export scene is led by Martin Códax, José Pariente, Marqués de Riscal, García Carrión, Barbadillo (Castillo de San Diego), Perelada and, of course, Torres, who have reported increases in their white wine sales over the past five years. However, the industry has its share of small-volume family outfits, particularly in Galicia.
Aromatic stars
One factor propelling Spain’s success is surely the advantageous linkage between Spain's offering and the style of aromatic whites that are currently in vogue. “We really push the stylistic link between Verdejo and Albariño and Sauvignon Blanc,” admits restauranteur José Pizarro. And of course, Spain has benefited from the growing consumption of white wine internationally, an acceptance of the style in emerging markets and its popularity as a tourist destination.
Gastronomic success is also another factor. London alone is booming with Spanish restaurants and producers are well placed to promote their wines in the on-trade. “Albariño is an easy sell in London. Most of our customers are familiar with this wine from their vacations in Spain; we always have this wine by the glass from the month of September until the end of October,” says Roast restaurant general manager Sergei Gubars. Encouraging growth has also been seen in the UK off-trade. According to Nielsen data, Verdejo sales reached 2.6m in the 12 months ending July 2014, with Spanish Sauvignon Blanc and Albariño also showing good growth. Spanish Chardonnay from Penedès and other regions across Catalunya remains a strong performer.
White Rioja must also not be omitted from this discussion. New labels and fresher styles are entering the market, although overall production levels (5% of the total) remain constant. However, Ricardo Aguiriano, marketing director for the Rioja Consejo Regulador, explains: “As a result of growing interest and demand, we’ve seen a recent increase in plantings and investment which will start to be reflected in production figures in three to four years’ time.” Exports of white Rioja are also buoyant: over 5m L ending June 2014, compared to 4.5m L in the period to June 2011.
Ultimately, there can be no better way of gauging a segment’s prospects than from the investment it continues to attract from the key stakeholders. Miguel Torres says: “We have planted a new white variety, a lost Catalan grape called ‘Selma Blanca’, although we will have to wait three years before we test this wine commercially.” Jose Luis Hermoso, head of research at the IWSR adds: “Both Rueda and Albariño still have space for growth. Rueda, if only for its production capacity, is still a major opportunity. In terms of marketing, Rueda wineries are also applying a very modern approach to developing their exports, through innovative labels, approach to consumers, etc, at the correct mass market price.”
If there is a threat on the horizon, other than instability in the eurozone, it’s that international producers will release their own brands of Albariño and Verdejo wines; at present, however, there are only small amounts of Albariño in California and Australia. There is also the super-premium segment to consider. “My biggest regret is that we never successfully produced a Vega Sicilia white under my tenure,” admits Pablo Álvarez. “We have tried experimenting in recent years, but I was never happy with the results.” And with lucrative sums being earned from Spain’s luxury reds, why should anyone bother? Yet, determined to be the first, Álvarez reports that the firm has started experimenting with his vineyards in Rioja, to see if a white worthy of the Vega Sicilia name can be done.
Perhaps a luxury Spanish white could still be on the cards.
