Ribeiro (DO)

Ribeiro is a Spanish Denominación de Origen Protegida (DOP) (Denominación de Orixe Protexida in Galician) for wines located in the northwest of the province of Ourense (Galicia, Spain), in the valleys formed by the Avia, Miño, and Arnoia rivers. It extends over the territories of nine municipalities in their entirety and includes parishes in five others.

History

The first mention of viticulture in Ribeiro comes from the writings of Strabo in the 2nd century BCE. Ancient stone wine presses dating from that period further prove the prevalence of winemaking during this period.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, little is known about winemaking in the Ribeiro until the medieval period, when Christian monks founded several important monasteries in the Ribeiro region. These monks expanded viticulture to supply local monasteries with wine, and the monasteries became the main drivers of viticulture in the region, encouraging the plantation of vineyards through feudal contracts. In addition to the monasteries, aristocratic families of large and medium-sized landowners also acquired vineyards in the region beginning in the 11th century.

Wine from Ribeiro became one of the most prized commodities in medieval Galicia, evidenced by the approval of a decree from 1133 listing the prices of foodstuffs sold in Santiago de Compostela which listed Ribeiro wine as the most expensive commodity. A few centuries later, Ribeiro wine was exported to the rest of Spain as well as Europe, with the English as the main customers outside the Iberian Peninsula.

By the 15th and 16th centuries, wine was Ribeiro's main export and was traded throughout Spain and Europe, reaching France, Portugal, Italy, and especially Great Britain. From the port cities of Pontevedra, Vigo, Baiona, and A Coruña, Ribeiro wine was transported to Brittany, Flanders, and especially England.