Comunidad Valenciana (Comunitat Valenciana)

This DO is named after the province as well as the capital of the province of Spain it lies in. It is located on the Mediterranean coast, on the Costa Blanca (white coast) in the Valencia region in the Levante. To the north of the city of Alicante lies the separate sub-zone of La Marina, which stretches along the coast from Denia to Culpe, this was only added 10 years later, and is mainly known for its sweet wines. A small part of the vineyard area of the Alicante Clásico sub-zone is located around the port city of Alicante, four fifths of the area is further inland, at an altitude of 500 to 650 metres above sea level. The overall vineyard area totals around 14.500 hectares. In the north, Alicante borders on the DO Valencia. The most widely planted grape variety is the red Monastrell, which is mainly used to produce rosados and fresh jovenes. Other red varieties include Garnacha (Grenache), Bobal, Tempranillo as well as, increasingly, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Pinot Noir. White varieties planted are mainly Merseguera, as well as Moscatel Romano (Muscat d´Alexandrie), Macabeo, Airén and small amounts of Chardonnay, and even a little Riesling. A regional speciality is the fortified red wine Fondillón, which is made from Monastrell (and Garnacha), it is partly made according to the solera method, and is matured in barrels for at least eight years. It has an alcohol content of 16 to 18%. This is made either as a sweet wine or as a rancio. In addition, a varietal white wine is made from extremely sweet, overripe Moscatel Romano grapes, this is fortified to 15% alcohol by volume. For blends, the Doble Pasta technique is still in use. Well-known producers include Boscope, Enrique Mendoza, El Sequé, Gutiérrez de la Vega und Telmo Rodríguez.