Verdejo

Verdejo most likely originated in Spain, the country of origin given in its VIVC passport, which lists the white-berried variety under the prime name Verdejo Blanco (variety number 12949). VIVC records its pedigree as Castellana Blanca × Savagnin, with Savagnin also known as Traminer, and marks it as a full pedigree confirmed by markers. WineWiki's VIVC-derived lineage data links no offspring to Verdejo and lists it as a half-sibling of Maturana Blanca, Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Grüner Veltliner and other varieties.

• VIVC prime name: Verdejo Blanco; variety number 12949; berry skin colour: blanc
• Country of origin: Spain (likely)
• Parents: Castellana Blanca × Savagnin (Traminer), confirmed by markers
• Offspring: none linked in WineWiki's lineage data

Isabella the Catholic particularly favoured the wine of the Tierra de Medina and in 1498 issued ordinances clearly protective of its vineyards. The arrival of phylloxera in 1884 marked the end of a long period in the history of Rueda's wines. In the early 1970s Marqués de Riscal, after several years studying white-wine areas of Spain and on the advice of the wine expert Émile Peynaud, chose Rueda for a second winery dedicated to white wines, and it produced its first white Verdejo there in 1972. Rueda's first DO regulations followed on 12 January 1980.

• Dorado: a liqueur wine from Palomino Fino and/or Verdejo, given oxidative ageing for at least four years, the last two of them in oak
• Phylloxera arrived in 1884, ending a long period in the history of Rueda's wines
• Marqués de Riscal chose Rueda on Émile Peynaud's advice and made its first white Verdejo there in 1972; Rueda's first DO regulations were approved in 1980

Verdejo is the principal grape of the Rueda DO in Castilla y León, a variety adapted to the local climate and soils and the reason the DO's wines exist. The production zone lies in the south of Valladolid province, reaching a little into western Segovia and northern Ávila, on flat but high land between 700 and 870 metres above sea level. Winters are cold and very long, springs short with late frosts, and summers hot and dry. The difference between day and night temperatures balances the sugar the grapes gain in the sun against the acidity they keep through the cool nights. Typically stony 'cascajoso' soils, formed from deposits of rounded quartzite pebbles, are a key factor in grape quality.

• Production zone: the south of Valladolid province, reaching a little into western Segovia and northern Ávila
• Altitude of 700 to 870 metres above sea level, with a continental influence
• Stony 'cascajoso' soils of rounded quartzite pebbles

Rueda's white wines show primary fruit, floral and/or herbaceous aromas of medium intensity, and taste clean and fresh with medium to high body. Verdejo is what sets them apart from the white wines of other zones, giving them freshness, aromatic intensity and presence in the mouth. Whites fermented or aged in barrel can be deeper in colour, with aromas from their time in barrel and a more intense flavour finishing on tertiary notes. Rueda Pálido, a dry liqueur wine made from Palomino Fino and/or Verdejo, is produced by biological ageing and spends at least its last three years before sale in oak barrels, keeping aromas from that ageing such as almonds, bread yeast or spice.

• Rueda whites: primary fruit, floral and/or herbaceous aromas; fresh, with medium to high body
• Barrel-fermented whites: aromas from the barrel and a more intense flavour

Cune Rueda, a young white from CVNE made from Verdejo, is fermented in stainless steel tanks at controlled temperatures to bring out and preserve the variety's primary fruity and floral aromas. Wines labelled 'Fermentado en Barrica' use oak barrels for both fermentation and ageing on the lees. The 'Gran Vino de Rueda' indication is reserved for wines that meet all three conditions: registered vineyards more than 30 years old, vineyard yields no higher than 6,500 kilograms per hectare, and an extraction yield not above 65 percent.

• Cune Rueda: stainless-steel fermentation at controlled temperatures to preserve primary fruity and floral aromas
• Fermentado en Barrica: oak barrels for both fermentation and lees ageing
• Gran Vino de Rueda: registered vineyards over 30 years old, yields no higher than 6,500 kg per hectare, extraction yield not above 65%
• Rueda Pálido: biological ageing, with at least the last three years before sale in oak barrels

Marqués de Riscal began producing white wines in Rueda in 1972 and counts itself among the wineries that drove the creation of the DO in 1980. All the vineyards it owns in Rueda obtained organic certification in 2018. Belondrade, home of Belondrade y Lurton, presents its wines as its own interpretation of Verdejo and traces its story to Didier Belondrade's dream of making a great white wine in Spain. Ossian Vides y Vinos, part of the Alma Carraovejas group, makes its Ossian entirely from Verdejo, from a small universe of parcels around Nieva in Segovia province that, in the winery's words, guard centuries of winegrowing tradition. Its wines are sold as V.T. Castilla y León.

• Marqués de Riscal: white wines from Rueda since 1972; all its Rueda vineyards certified organic in 2018
• Belondrade: home of Belondrade y Lurton
• Ossian: 100% Verdejo from parcels around Nieva (Segovia); wines sold as V.T. Castilla y León

Primary sources: https://www.vivc.de/index.php?r=passport%2Fview&id=12949 ; https://www.mapa.gob.es/es/alimentacion/temas/calidad-diferenciada/rueda_2023_11_29_tcm30-211417.pdf ; https://www.marquesderiscal.com/en/our-history ; https://www.marquesderiscal.com/la-introduccion-de-la-uva-sauvignon-blanc-en-rueda ; https://belondrade.com/en/about-us/ ; https://cvne.com/en/wines/cune-rueda/ ; https://almacarraovejas.com/portfolio-items/ossian/ Reference sources: https://www.jancisrobinson.com/learn/grape-varieties/white/verdejo Last verified 2026-10-27