La Mancha
La Mancha
The largest vineyard region in Europe, La Mancha is an enormous wine region that swallows up 182 municipalities within its border. Like many of the regions of Spain, the vineyard area of over 200,000 hectares sits on a high plateau, around 600 metres above sea level. In this dusty, arid landscape producers are often forced to overcome extreme heat in their vineyards, and the altitude of the vineyards helps this, but only a little. Such a vast region is highly diverse, and a broad range of grapes are grown and used to make wines ranging from inexpensive table wines to serious, highly oaked examples of expressive Tempranillo. The local variety Airen accounts for the majority of production and is used mainly for domestic consumption. Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha, Chardonnay, Merlot, Monastrell and Torrontes are only the start of a long list of varieties cultivated across this expansive region.
