StateWays ■ www.stateways.com ■ January/February 2016
32
SPANISH WINE
BY MARNIE OLD
The Reign of Spain
EXCEPTIONAL VALUE AND A WEALTH OF NATIVE GRAPES.
director for North America Ana Fabiano. "The most dra-
matic gains have been in the Reserva category, which rep-
resents 28% of year to date shipments – twice its 2010
market share. Rioja Rosado is also up 30% so far in 2015."
While many other exporting countries that came on
strong in the late 20th century have since fl attened or
fallen from fashion, wines from Spain have remained on
the cutting edge. "People haven't gotten bored with Spain
because there's always something new to try, something
unique that can't be found elsewhere." according to re-
tailer TJ Douglas, owner of Boston's Urban Grape.
RETHINKING SPANISH WINE
"Spain is just as strong in high-quality table wines as it is in
specialties like sparkling and fortifi ed wines," explains Will
Willis, global brand ambassador for Ferrer Family Wines,
part of the Freixenet Group. "The entire spectrum is avail-
able, in every color and style, from climates that range from
S
pain fi rst earned the attention of American wine
drinkers in the 80s and 90s on the strength of its
bargain reds and bubbles. Today's wine drinkers are
just as likely to be splurging on premium Albariños and
Tempranillos as they are snapping up affordable Cavas and
Garnachas, but Spain continues to excel at what matters
most to consumers and retailers in every tier - price to
quality ratio.
"You can't beat Spain for value," says Dennis Kohl, the
beverage consultant for Trig's Cellar 70, located within the
stores of an upscale Wisconsin grocery group. "That was
true when I fi rst joined the company 22 years ago and it's
still true today." However, what he's selling has defi nitely
changed from decades past. While early entries like Rioja,
Ribera del Duero and Cava still lead the pack, their mo-
mentum is shifting upscale and diversifying in style.
National fi gures verify these trends. "Exports of Rioja
to the U.S. have doubled since 2009," says Rioja's trade