Consejo Regulador Denominación de Origen Bierzo

Bierzo county is located in the northwest of the province of León, in the Castilla y León region, and covers an area of 2954.28 km, which accounts for 18% of the provincial area. Geographically it borders the provinces of Ourense, Lugo and Asturias and it is a main connection between Galicia, León and Asturias. Bierzo's vineyards is characterized by fragmentation of parcels and smallholder plots, vines on slopes, from 450 to 800 meters whose are oriented to the four cardinal points. Bierzo vineyard's soil stabilise from Miocene materials coated by a layer of Quaternary. Texture is silt loam, moderately acidic, its pH is close to 5.5, with the absence of carbonates, typical of humid climates. The soils on slopes are made of a mixture of minerals, quartzite and slate. The Bierzo is a very special and suitable microclimate for vine growing. The natural barrier of Sierra de los Ancares calm the force of the Atlantic storms and produces a continental climate with the influence of the Ocean. The annual rainfall is 721 mm and the average temperature of 12.3 ° C, recorded minimum temperatures of 3.6 ° C in the cold months and maximum of 23.6 ° C in the hottest months. The annual average insolation is estimated between 2,100 and 2,200 hours of sunshine.