Costers del Segre, a hidden wine-producing gem

Costers del Segre may sound like a Spanish holiday resort, but, in fact, is a fantastic wine region based in the North East of Spain. Within spitting distance of Barcelona, this is a wine region that I suspect will surprise most experienced oenophiles.

A classic old-world wine region, with the red wines created from classic grape varietals including Tempranillo (the famous grape variety of Rioja and Ribera del Duero), Syrah (the same grape as Shiraz) and Garnacha (the same red grape as Grenache from Southern Rhone in France) – it really does offer plenty of quality for a relatively little-known region.

On the white wine end of things, you have classic grape varietals such as Albarino, Grenache Blanc and Moscatel (best known for sweet wines).

Waud Wines came across Costers del Segre when visiting the London Wine Fair a number of years ago. The vineyard that stood out from the crowd was Clos Pons, who originally made the bulk of their money through selling olive oil. They have a very good eye for details – and all of their bottles look incredibly smart indeed.

Our Costers del Segre stock wines are Clos Pons Alges and Clos Pons Sisquella. These wines have been featured on our list for many years. In the very good years, we list their more grown up wines of Clos Pons Roc Nu red, as well as Roc de Foc white. These are undoubtedly fine wines – and offer incredible value compared to many other areas of the old world.

If North West Spain is your thing as well as Costers del Segre, you should check out the great wines of Priorat. These are a little more niche, and a little on the punchier side of the price point however, once you get to know and appreciate them, you will certainly look to pick them on a restaurant wine list.