La Mancha
This region is the largest area under vine in Europe. It is very, very dry but the altitude helps a bit. Here the challenge is to overcome the extreme heat – and Airen is the white grape variety that is most widely planted, it’s a local favourite but is also used to provide the base wine for brandy production. Despite the dominance of Airen, La Manchas best wines are red. Bobal, Tempranillo (also known as Cencibal) as well as other international varieties make for bold and intensely flavoured wines.