DO Terra Alta

Key Points

Grape varieties: Garnacha Blanca, Garnacha, Garnacha Peluda, Macabeo, Samsó
Hectares planted: 5,500 Hectares
Grape growers: 1,600
Wineries: 45

Map of Spanish wine region Terra Alta

About Terra Alta

Take the road to Terra Alta (literally "high land") and you begin to understand the region’s struggle to get on Spain’s wine map. Stuck in the far south-west of Catalunya, on the right bank of the Ebro river, getting here can be a trek. County capital Gandesa is just 55 km inland from the Mediterranean, but if you’re unlucky enough to get stuck behind a lorry as it clanks its way through the gears on the climb up from Reus, it can feel a lot further.

But stick with it, it's worth the wait. As you slip down the hill past Falset, resist the temptation for a side visit to Priorat or a stopover in Montsant and push on for the last 40 km to Gandesa. Cross city limits, and immediately the wonderful modernist cooperative building surges into view. Designed in 1920 by César Martinell, a disciple of Antoni Gaudí, the building's vaulted roof and minaret-like water towers seem more of an architectural homage to the surrounding viticulture than a working building.

The terrain of Terra Alta

This is a county defined by its Mediterranean agriculture. Covering some twelve towns with a combined population of around 12,000 people, the plains, plateaus and valleys are planted with olive and almond trees, but above all vines. With just over 5,000 hectares (more than any other DO in Catalunya) planted at between 350 and 600 metres altitude, grapes are the region's core crop, and every year the harvest brings in close to 40 million kilos of fruit.

In many ways, the region is defined by its climate and meteorology. It's a Mediterranean climate with continental influences, where mild autumns tend to be followed by cold winters, late springs and hot summers. Wind is a key factor too, and helps keep the vines healthy – the cierzo wind funnels in cold and dry from Aragon to the north, while the garbinada blows in from the Mediterranean bringing warmth and humidity. Rainfall is relatively low – 450mm/year – thanks in large part to the Els Ports mountain range to the south, which can act as a buffer to clouds rolling in from the Mediterranean.

Ask Joan Àngel Lliberia, owner of the Editaria vineyard, what sets Terra Alta apart from the competition, and the answer is very clear: soil. Sure, he concedes, this is not neighbouring Priorat with its famed llicorella (decomposed slate), but Terra Alta’s trademark panal (fossilized sand dunes) and tapàs (silty soils with clay) make for well-drained soils where the vines are forced to make the effort and dig deep for water and nutrients. Lliberia also praises the region’s old plantings which ensure there’s no shortage of raw material to work with and can make for slightly thicker skin on the grape, thereby protecting against water loss and locking a little more freshness into the wines.

The grapes of Terra Alta

Garnacha, especially of the white variety, is king here. At 1,400 hectares, Terra Alta is home to 90% of the Garnacha Blanca planted in Catalunya, or one-third of the global total. For many of the region’s growers, the variety’s ability to reflect the characteristics of the soil in which it is planted, coupled with its ability to adapt and withstand drought, makes it an ideal choice.

In terms of flavours, Garnacha Blanca wines tend to give full-bodied whites with lots of white fruit & Mediterranean herbs. They can have an appealing minerality and, over time, take on stone fruit & petrol notes. And if it’s been oak-aged you’ll often find lovely baked apple and bready flavours. Delicious!

In summary

Terra Alta may not be the easiest Spanish wine region to reach. But with its Mediterranean climate, it's varied geography, its wonderful soils, and its Garnacha Blanca grapes, it's a region that true wine-lovers really should have on their travel list.

A vineyard in the autumn in the Spanish wine region of Alicante

DO Alicante

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An old white cottage on the brow of a hill at sunset in the Spanish wine region of Bierzo

DO Bierzo

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VT Cadiz

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A vineyard at Spanish Cava producers Bodegas Grimau

DO Cava

Cava is Spain’s most well-known sparkling wine. What many don't know is that it's also a DO in its own right. But unlike wines from other DOs, Cava is not made in just one geographical area.

A landscape shot of the Serra Llarga in the Spanish wine region Costers del Segre

DO Costers del Segre

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Jumilla

DO Jumilla

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Manchuela

DO Manchuela

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Barells in a wine cellar in the Spanish wine region of Sanlucar de Barrameda

DO Manzanilla - Sanlúcar de Barrameda

In 1935, Spain’s first Denominación de Origen, D.O. Jerez-Xéres-Sherry y Manzanilla de Sanlúcar de Barrameda was created and then in 1964, in recognition of Manzanilla’s distinct profile, the separate DO Manzanilla – Sanlúcar de Barrameda was formed.

A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Montsant with mountains in the background

DO Montsant

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A vineyard at Bodegas Grimau in the Spanish wine region of Penedes

DO Penedès

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Priorat

DOQ Priorat

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rías Baixas

DO Rías Baixas

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Steeply sloping vineyards on the banks of a river in the Spanish wine region of Ribeira Sacra in Galicia

DO Ribeira Sacra

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Ribeiro

DO Ribeiro

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An aerial view of the River Duero in Spain

DO Ribera del Duero

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A landscape view of a vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rioja

DOCa Rioja

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Close up of vines in a vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Rueda

DO Rueda

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DO Sierras de Málaga

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Somontano

DO Somontano

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A vineyard in the Spanish wine region of Toro

DO Toro

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An aerial shot of vineyards in the Spanish wine region of Vinos de Madrid

DO Vinos de Madrid

Despite its best efforts, the Vinos de Madrid region is still relatively unknown even for wine drinkers in Madrid. Which is a real shame because the DO has got a lot to shout about.