Looking out from the town of Toro over the Meseta Central
Toro’s early risers know that there are few better sights than the sunrise over the great Meseta Central (the Central Plateau), which dominates the region of Castilla y León. As you look out from the Alcázar de Toro (the town’s fortress), the river Duero approaches the city from the south before curving westwards on its journey to Portugal.
To the east of Toro, you can almost see the town of Tordesillas in Rueda, while in the west, Zamora hovers on the horizon. Directly ahead, the plain stretches all the way south to Salamanca. As the dawn breaks, this vast landscape is embraced by the rising sun’s warm, amber rays, tentacles that slowly creep across the region’s imposing plain.
Perched at an altitude of 740m, Toro surveys the surrounding fields and vineyards. In the Middle Ages, the town was strategically important in the feuds between warring royal factions. But even then, against the backdrop of court intrigues, Toro wine played an important role: records show that, unusually, they were distributed to other parts of the country. In fact, throughout Toro’s past, its wines have been central to its development and identity.
Toro’s wines have been renowned for centuries
A region steeped in history
Christopher Columbus could be considered the first exporter of Spanish wines to the New World: he stocked his ships with the high-alcohol wines of Toro, since they had the substance to last the journey. The renown of the region’s wines endured for centuries – until the upheaval following the Civil War, when cereal crops replaced much of Toro’s vineyard area as the country attempted to increase food production.
This could have been the end of the story for Toro – but in 1987 the Denominación de Origen was created, followed by an influx of investment from producers from other regions of Spain. Vega Sicilia was one of the first to show interest, bringing its know-how from Ribera del Duero to establish Bodegas Pintia. Likewise, the Eguren family of Sierra Cantabria in Rioja soon bought into the region and launched their Numanthia range of wines.
DO Toro’s 2024 harvest totalled around 19.7 million kg
Toro today
DO Toro encompasses nearly 5,500ha of vines, which provide the grapes to 64 registered wineries – who harvested just under 20.3 million kg in 2024. With the arrival of new winemakers in the 1990s and 2000s, many new vineyards were planted, some of which, now 30 years old, are producing outstanding wines.
But one of the particular jewels of Toro is its concentration of old vines. The sands here are very stony and sandy, which protected Toro’s vineyards from the worst impacts of phylloxera at the turn of the last century. There are still over 1,000ha of vines that are over 50 years old – and some that are over 100 years old.
This is Tinta de Toro country. Sometimes misleadingly described as a clone of Tempranillo, Tinta de Toro has its own very distinct phenotypic profile, and has emphatically made its home in the region. It is by far the most planted grape, claiming 92% of the total vineyard area, and is the protagonist in most of the DO’s wines. Garnacha is the region’s second red grape (with 2% of total plantings). DO Toro’s few whites (accounting for just under 6% of land under vine) are made up of Malvasía Castellana, Verdejo, Albillo Real and Moscatel de Grano Menudo.
About 60% of the DO’s vineyards are centred around the towns of Morales de Toro and Toro itself. San Roman de Hornija, to the south-east of Toro, and Pedroso del Rey, to the north-east, are the next most important vineyard areas. Lastly, two towns in the deep south of the DO – El Pego and Venialbo – make up the third significant sub-zone of production, and are recognised by producers as areas of great viticultural interest.
These grapes have adapted to the dry and unforgiving climate of hot summers and very cold winters. Anyone planning a trip to the region can…
Source : https://www.decanter.com/sponsored/do-toro-tasting-a-land-and-its-history-549003/
