Europe isn’t the birthplace of wine, but it certainly is the mecca of the wine world. There’s an entire world of wine to discover within this diverse continent and it is by far the biggest wine-producing continent in the world. There are so many amazing wine regions in Europe to discover. Here are our wine region guides so far – but this chapter is by no means finished yet…
Europe wine guide
Access all the articles here; otherwise scroll down for the highlights by country (ordered alphabetically so as not to show any bias!)
Austria wine guide
Austrian wines offer a great diversity of varieties spread over its different wine regions around the country. Hard to pigeonhole, Austria focuses on white wine production (two-thirds of its wines are white, and mainly Grüner Veltliner) but there are also some exciting red wines being made – including native varieties like Zweigelt, Blaufränkisch and St Laurent.
I was lucky enough to head to the Austrian wine regions during the harvest season of 2017, where I visited the following wine regions to produce this guide to Austrian wine and Austrian wine producers:
- Austria’s wine regions & single-vineyard focus
- Blaufränkisch wine guide and the Spitzerberg wine region
- Carnuntum wine region guide
- The past, present and future of Austrian wine
- Grüner Veltliner wine guide
- St Laurent wine guide
- Traisental wine region guide
- Zweigelt wine guide
- Terroir Essentials & Fast Facts on Austria’s wine regions and wine production
Croatia wine guide
Croatia is one of the most surprising wine countries I have visited. Croatia has one of the world’s highest per capita levels of wine consumption, which tells you how much Croatians love their wine. In certain parts of the country, it feels as though everyone and their grandfather make wine and there is a true garage winemaker feel here which makes it a delight to visit.
But that’s not all… There are old vines aplenty, interesting native varieties, fantastic food and gorgeous countryside and coastline almost everywhere you go. If Croatia wasn’t on your wine travel bucket list before, add it now.
- Stari Grad & Hvar wine guide
- Guide to Istria’s wines (and food!)
- A wine lover’s guide to visiting Croatia
- The flavours of Pag island
- 101 on Istrian climate
- All Croatian articles
English wine guide
Although England has been producing wine for over a thousand years (there were numerous vineyards registered in the Domesday book of 1086), it is very much considered a ‘new’ wine country by most consumers and has shot to fame in the last decade because of its excellent sparkling wine.
With soils and climate comparable to Champagne, it isn’t much of a surprise that the emphasis is in southern England and on high-quality, traditional method sparklers.
I am still dipping into the English wine harvest, but here are some highlights so far:
- English sparkling wine: A winemaker’s perspective with Emma Rice
- A 360-degree terroir tour of the South Downs with Exton Park
- Making wine in Hampshire: A view from Jenkyn Place
- All English wine articles
French wine guide
If there’s one wine country everyone has heard of, it’s France. With some of the world’s most famous wines, wine regions and wine producers, France is a titan of the wine world.
We’ve been dipping into both the best known and some of the lesser-known wine regions in France to bring up-to-date databases on wine production, producer perspectives and guides.
Here’s some of our recent regional coverage (although it is only the tip of the iceberg):
- Guide to the Champagne process
- Saint-Emilion terroir & history
- Bordeaux’s en primeur
- Is Champagne moving towards biodynamics?
- Fast Facts: Beaujolais; The Loire (including detailed guides to Anjou-Saumur; Touraine; Central Loire; Pays Nantais); Burgundy; Cognac; Alsace; Gaillac.
Italy wine guide
Wine and food culture runs through the arteries of Italy. All along the country there are remarkably diverse wine regions, grape varieties and local cuisines that make this one of the most exciting wine countries to imbibe and indulge in. There’s lots more to come in our Italy wine guide, but you can scope out our first steps online now.
Portugal wine guide
Portugal feels like one of the best-kept wine secrets in western Europe. It has a long winemaking history, produces a lot of wine and created the most important fortified wine category in the world. However its wine regions still feel surprisingly undiscovered.
During the 2017 harvest, I spent a large amount of time traversing Portugal’s different wine regions and have since gone back in order to bring you a wide range of guides and insights into this country’s fascinating wine production:
- All Portuguese wines and wine region guides
- A guide to Dão wines
- The new Douro wines
- Baga wines & Bairrada terroir
- A taste of the Alentejo
- Port – one of the world’s greatest time capsule wines
- How wine corks are made – following the cork harvest
- How Port is made: An interactive guide to Port production
Spanish wine guide
The wines of Spain are often seen as great value but beyond this – correct – stereotype is a country with great tradition, exciting innovation and a plethora of wine styles, varieties and regions. From the salty and distinct wines from the very tip of Jerez in the south to the fresh and vibrant wines of Galicia in the far northwest, or the complex reds of north-central Spain, you can find a wine for every day of the year in Spain.
I’ve got stacks of content from my travels in Spain, which has taken a very mañana, mañana approach to reaching the page, so keep your eyes peeled for some updates to this list soon:
- Rias Baixas & Albariño guide
- Tasting the grandes pagos of Spain
- A lifetime in Sherry with Julian Jeffs
- The ageability of Albariño
Swiss wine guide
They may only export a teeny tiny amount of it, but Swiss wine is worth the wait. This small nation makes very precise wines which reflect its cool climate, long wine history and mixed heritage with French, German and Italian roots. I explored the major wine regions in Switzerland dodging rain storms and ducking under rainbows (and occasionally basking in sunshine) during the 2017 harvest and delighted in meeting passionate wine producers around the country. Here are some highlights online so far: