Spanish wine producers revive field blends and indigenous grapes

Spanish wine’s identity is widening beyond Rioja, Cava and Sherry, argues sommelier and wine educator Gagan Sharma. In an opinion piece for Sommelier India, Sharma points to producers emphasizing vineyard sites, old vines and indigenous grapes, including some who choose not to foreground appellation categories on their labels.

The essay describes renewed interest in field blends, where different grape varieties are grown and fermented together, and in old bush vines, including ungrafted vines. Sharma also links attention to cooler sites with warming conditions, citing Spain’s varied mountain, plateau and coastal climates.

In Sherry, Sharma identifies Vinos de Pasto as a 2025 designation for unfortified wines. The piece says these wines use native grapes and traditional methods, including fermentation in old Sherry casks and time under flor. It presents the style as one response to changing conditions in the region and demand for lighter wines.

Other examples span Spain’s Atlantic coast and interior. In Txakolina, the author describes producers working with lees ageing, amphorae and skin contact, alongside traditional whites, while Rías Baixas is seeing renewed interest in local red grapes such as Caíño Tinto, Espadeiro and Sousón. In Ribera del Duero, some producers are again making wines from mixed plantings in old vineyards. Together, these cases make Sharma’s argument that Spanish wine’s emerging expressions often draw on practices and varieties with long local histories.