Bodegas Chozas Carrascal gets Vino de Pago status

Valencia-based Chozas Carrascal became officially moved up from the DO Utiel Requena classification to Vino de Pago (VP) at the end of last month.

It is the 13th Spanish winery to reach VP. Membership criteria includes wines made only from the grapes grown on the estate, and those which have won themselves an international reputation for quality.

Founded in the early 1990s by Julián López, Chozas Carrascal has 40 hectares of vines and its wines sell well in the US.

The new classification means it can use VP on its flagship wine, El Cabernetf, made from Cabernet Franc grapes. This wine previously fell outside of the DO Utiel Requena rules.

Alongside international varieties, the estate is doing a lot of work on Bobal, possibly the ‘comeback king’ amongst  Valencia’s native grapes. It also makes sparkling wine under the Denominación Cava.  

Spain introduced the ‘Pago’ class with its 2003 national wine law, but regional governments must ratify the classification before wineries can use it. So far, only Castilla-La Mancha, Navarra and Valencia have done so.