Arganda del Rey 

Arganda del Rey is a town with history, much of it very sad, most recently it having been slap-bang on the front line in the protracted and very destructive Battle of the Jarama in the Spanish Civil War. It is also set in the Parque Regional del Sudeste nature reserve of Madrid and you would think that the combination of the two factors would make it an interesting place. Wrong. There is very little to see and it almost totally lacks atmosphere, except for a small bar I once found there which had Spanish Civil War weapons hanging on the wall - a bayonet, a bazooka, and so on. At least, I was convinced they were Civil War weapons - the solitary barman was unable to give me any information. In any case, for the purposes of this little section, it is the centre of one of the three sub-zones making up the Vinos de Madrid "designation of origiin" (as TourSpain has taken to translating denominación de origen. The lnik goes to Arganda del Rey's municipal web site.
Added on: 09-Dec-2007 | hits: 61
Rate this web site | Modify | Report broken link | Details

D.O. Vinos de Madrid 

Madrid has been a wine region since at least the 13th century, probably a lot longer, but the denominación de origen has only existed since 1990. That is partly because until relatively recently Madrid wine was not all that hot, but it is steadily emerging as a quality wine region producing reliable, orthodox brews. This orthodoxy means that the wine grapes grown and used are similar to those in more successful Spanish wine regions like Rioja or Ribera del Duero - Tempranillo, Cabernet Sauvignon, Garnacha, Merlot and Syrah for red wine and Airén, Malvar, Albillo, Moscatel, Parellada, Torontés, and Viura/Macabeo for white. It also means that in the last twenty years, by hard work rather than inspiration, the quality of Madrid wine has improved beyond recognition. Vinos de Madrid is actually three different subzones, all to the south of the city of Madrid. From east to west, they are Arganda del Rey , Navalcarnero and San Martín de Valdeiglesias. The link above goes to the website of D.O. Vinos de Madrid's regulatory board which, at the time of writing, was entirely devoid of content, with only a notice on the home page saying "Back After the Harvest."
Added on: 09-Dec-2007 | hits: 36
Rate this web site | Modify | Report broken link | Details

Navalcarnero 

Navalcarnero is near the south-west border between the provinces of Madrid and Toledo. It is a splendid little place, a typical Castilian market town (New Castile, that is), great to walk around and a popular outing from Madrid for a long weekend lunch. It is on this page because it is the third subzone of the D.O. Vinos de Madrid.
Added on: 09-Dec-2007 | hits: 54
Rate this web site | Modify | Report broken link | Details

San Martín de Valdeiglesias 

San Martín de Valdeiglesias is in the far west of the province of Madrid. It is an attractive corner, the Sierra Oeste de Madrid, near the San Juan reservoir. San Martín has an attractive Baroque church, a number of really odd hermitages and a fabulous castle, La Coracera, which may or may not be visitable when you are there, as it is being done out to serve as a regional wine museum. This is why San Martin is on this page, as it is the centre of one of the three subzones making up the Denomination of Origin Vinos de Madrid. The link above goes to San Martín de Valdeiglesias's totally municipal municipal web site, though if you click "Turismo San Martín" in the menu on the left-hand side, you will at least get to the tourism sub-site, also only in Spanish but at least bearable.
Added on: 09-Dec-2007 | hits: 50
Rate this web site | Modify | Report broken link | Details