This post is also available in: Español (Spanish)
In Spain, we have different classifications to identify the wines produced in the different regions. Today we on our blog we’d like to tell you about one of the most special of these classifications: Vinos de Pago. One example of this type of wine is our Pago Florentino, which we make in the municipality of Malagón, in Castile-La Mancha.
But what does it mean for a wine to be a Vino de Pago? First of all, it should be noted that the grapes for most wines come from one or several parcels or pagos in Spanish, the term used for the delimited areas where the vineyards are found. This might be misleading, however, because even though a parcel can be called a pago in general, it doesn’t mean that all wines are specifically Vinos de Pago.
When we talk about Vinos de Pago, we’re talking about a grading, specifically the highest covered by the legislation. To be more specific, the exact snippet of the law that regulates pagos says that ‘“pago” means a rural place or site with specific edaphic and microclimatic characteristics that differentiate it and distinguish it from others in its surroundings, known with a name connected in a traditional and consistent manner to the cultivation of the vineyards from which wines are obtained that have unique features and qualities, and whose maximum area shall be limited by regulation by the competent authority’.
Moreover, the law currently in force also states that all grapes used to make these wines must come from vineyards located on the pago and that the wine must be made, stored and aged separately from other wines.
There are only 19 Vinos de Pago wines in Spain today, the majority of which come from Valencia and Castilla-La Mancha, so this classification makes them even more exclusive. We thus define Vinos de Pago as very special wines whose grapes grow in a very specific area and that have very specific environmental conditions as well.
At Bodegas Arzuaga we make two of the only Vinos de Pago in Spain. There’s the one we mentioned earlier, Pago Florentino, whose name honours the winery’s founder, Florentino Arzuaga. This wine, made exclusively from Cencibel (Tempranillo) grapes, is a clean, brilliant red that has a multitude of aromas that go from ripe red fruit to roasted coffee, black fruits and toasted notes. On the palate, you’ll discover a wine with lots of intensity and persistence. It’s a real treat for the senses provided by a unique, one-of-a-kind wine.