Rias Baixas W I N E S T A T S. I N F O. Base maps Google Maps

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Rias Baixas Rias Baixas is the largest of five Denominacións de Origen Protegida (DOPs) in Galicia, northwest Spain. Wines from this DOP generate an annual revenue of ca.

1 Rias Baixas Rias Baixas is the largest of five Denominacións de Origen Protegida (DOPs) in Galicia, northwest Spain. Wines from this DOP generate an annual revenue of ca. 100 million - an important wealth creator for this largely rural area. Some 6,600 farmers are engaged in growing grapes on tiny parcels averaging 0.17 ha. Ca. 96% of the harvest is of the white varietal Albariño, which is almost synonymous with Rias Baixas. Grapes are supplied to 177 wineries, only a handful of which produce >5,000 hl. The office of the Consello Regulador works to ensure that the benefits of wine-growing accrue to all stakeholders. The vineyard area has almost doubled during the 21st century, allowing production and exports to grow. Rueda and La Mancha are now Spain s only DOP regions which sell significantly more white wine. After a poor harvest in 2012, Rias Baixas and its supporters are hoping for a more productive yield in Base maps Google Maps W I N E S T A T S. I N F O

INTRODUCTION Located within Galicia in northwestern Spain, Rias Baixas is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and by Portugal to the south.

The highly indented coastline with many headlands and inlets (rias in Galician) has come about by the drowning of river valleys.

Of Spain s DOPs, only Rueda and La Mancha have significantly larger white wine sales and much of La Mancha s sales are derived from low value bulk exports.

2 INTRODUCTION Located within Galicia in northwestern Spain, Rias Baixas is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west and by Portugal to the south. The landscape consists of deeply dissected metamorphic rocks and granites, which give rise to steep slopes and coarsegrained alluvial soils. The highly indented coastline with many headlands and inlets (rias in Galician) has come about by the drowning of river valleys. Established as a Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) in 1988, Rias Baixas has become one of the most important white wine producing regions of Spain. Of Spain s DOPs, only Rueda and La Mancha have significantly larger white wine sales and much of La Mancha s sales are derived from low value bulk exports. In , the average revenue for Rias Baixas wine was 5.7/litre, compared to Rueda s average revenue of 3.0/litre 1. the majority of growers are located within the Val do Salnés subzone. Grape growing is an important economic activity for many small farmers in Rias Baixas and contributes significantly to rural wealth generation. The clear differentiation between growers and wine producers has given rise to occasional tensions between the two groups. This has served to strengthen the cooperative movement. Vineyard Area The total vineyard area of Rias Baixas has almost doubled during the 21st century from 2,292 ha in 2000 to 4,048 ha by Rias Baixas is officially divided into five viticultural subzones, but two of these have a combined vineyard area of less than 200 ha. Val do Salnés is the largest of the subzones. VITICULTURE Growers In 1990 there were 1,568 registered wine grape growers in Rias Baixas. Their numbers grew rapidly over the next two decades but have been stable for the last five years at around 6,600 growers. Since 2002 the Consello Regulador D.O. Rias Baixas has reported grower numbers by region. This shows that 1 Elaboration of data in Anonymous (2013) W I N E S T A T S. I N F O 2

Mencia, Pedral Data source: Consello Regulador, D.O.

3 Vineyard Parcels good deal of experimentation, either now or in the future. White Black Rias Baixas Grape Varietals Recommended Albariño, Loureira Blanca, Treixadura, Caiño Blanca Caiño Tinto, Espadeiro, Loureira Tinta, Sousón Authorised Torrontés, Godello Brancellao, Mencia, Pedral Data source: Consello Regulador, D.O. Rias Baixas Owing to the steep hillside slopes and narrow valley floors Val do Salnés vineyard area of 2,269 ha in 2012 was made up from 15,418 separate parcels of vines. This meant that the average vineyard parcel size was only 0.15 ha. This pattern of small vineyard parcel size is repeated across the other subzones. Although many growers own more than one vineyard parcel, the average vineyard holding per grower across the entire D.O. Rias Baixas is only 0.6 ha. Rias Baixas in 2012 Vineyard area 4,048 ha Number of growers 6,712 Number of vineyard parcels 23,232 Average parcel size 0.17 ha Average holding/grower 0.6 ha Average no. parcels/grower 3.5 The Consello Regulador has not published details of the varietal make-up of the Rias Baixas vineyard but, based on harvest records (see below), it would seem that ca. 96% of the vines are Albariño. This figure has not changed significantly in the last 10 years. GRAPES HARVESTED & CRUSHED Albariño dominates the grape harvest in the Rias Baixas D.O. and over the past ten years has made up ca. 96% of the grapes crushed. An additional 3% consists of other white varietals. The total of black varietals represents only 1% of grapes harvested and crushed. Data Source: Consello Regulador, D.O. Rias Baixas Grape Varietals According to the D.O. Rias Baixas regulations of 2009, six white and seven black grape varietals are permitted within the appellation. This surely encompasses all varietals which have been historically grown in the region and gives room for a The Val do Salnés subzone makes up the greatest proportion of grape production, as would be 3 W I N E S T A T S. I N F O

subzones. WINE PRODUCTION The number of wineries in Rias Baixas has increased dramatically from only 14 in 1987 to a peak of 201 wineries in 2008.

Due to annual climatic variations in northwest Spain, yields in Rias Baixas have varied significantly from year to year. A peak yield of 72.

Following the successful harvest in 2011 there followed a disappointingly low yield in 2012 (29.6 hl/ha).

4 expected given its vineyard size. Other subzones make contributions roughly in proportion to their vineyard area, so only small amounts of fruit are obtained from the Ribeira do Ulla and Soutomaior subzones. WINE PRODUCTION The number of wineries in Rias Baixas has increased dramatically from only 14 in 1987 to a peak of 201 wineries in Of the 177 wineries in 2012, all but one of them did their own bottling. Facilities tend to be small with only four wineries producing more than 5,000 hl in Due to annual climatic variations in northwest Spain, yields in Rias Baixas have varied significantly from year to year. A peak yield of 72.4 hl/ha was achieved in 2011, but they have been as low as 12.0 hl/ha (1998). Following the successful harvest in 2011 there followed a disappointingly low yield in 2012 (29.6 hl/ha). This has been attributed to unusually low temperatures and heavy rainfall in June 2012 resulting in very poor fruit set 2. The quantity of wine produced closely follows the amount of grapes harvested, with the ratio between the two having varied in only a narrow range of l/kg since Langton (2012) Wine production figures are not reported by varietal, but based on what it known about the harvest only about 1% of production is red or rosé. W I N E S T A T S. I N F O 4

SALES Volume Sales of Rias Baixas wine have increased markedly in the 21st century from 80,000 hl in 2001-02 to a peak of 219,000 hl a decade later.

Revenue Over the past five years revenues have broadly followed sales as revenues per litre have fluctuated in a narrow band between 5-6/litre. This is true both for domestic sales and exports.

Europe has shown steady, if less spectacular growth.

5 SALES Volume Sales of Rias Baixas wine have increased markedly in the 21st century from 80,000 hl in to a peak of 219,000 hl a decade later. Domestic sales of Rias Baixas wines currently account for ca. 80% of total sales volume, though this figure was down to 74% in as supplies tightened. and Switzerland. Revenue Over the past five years revenues have broadly followed sales as revenues per litre have fluctuated in a narrow band between 5-6/litre. This is true both for domestic sales and exports. Exports have been growing at roughly the same rate as that of wine production. The Americas account for the majority of exports by volume, of which the US is by far the largest market. Europe has shown steady, if less spectacular growth. The largest markets by volume in Europe are the UK, Germany REFERENCES Anonymous (2013) Datos de las Denominaciones de Origen Protegidas de Vinos (DOPs); Campaña 2011/2012. Espana Ministerio de Agricultura, Alimentacion y Medio Ambiente, Madrid, 53 pp Langton, P (2012) Spain s 2012 Harvest. Wines from Spain, 12 pp WEBSITES Consello Regulador, D.O. Rias Baixas 5 W I N E S T A T S. I N F O

STATE OF THE VITIVINICULTURE WORLD MARKET

STATE OF THE VITIVINICULTURE WORLD MARKET April 2018 1 Table of contents 1. VITICULTURAL PRODUCTION POTENTIAL 3 2. WINE PRODUCTION 5 3. WINE CONSUMPTION 7 4. INTERNATIONAL TRADE 9 Abbreviations: kha: thousands