Our History

The county of Cariñena has a long-standing vine growing tradition, which dates back to the III c. before Christ. Back then, its citizens already drank wine mixed with honey, while the Romans themselves were fond of the wines of this region. Later written records continued praising the wines in this area and in the XVI c, the fountains in Cariñena poured wine in honour of Phillip II, a tradition that has been kept intact up to our days. In 1909, Alfonso XII gave Cariñena the designation of "city", as a reward for having started to recover grape growing after the attack of phylloxera parasites. In 1932, Cariñena obtained for its wine the first Designation of Origin (D.O.) in the state of Aragón.

The designation of origin (D.O.) of Cariñena www.docarinena.com comprises 14 towns in the south of the province of Zaragoza: Aguarón, Aladrén, Alfamén, Almonacid de la Sierra, Alpartir, Cosuenda, Encinacorba, Longares, Mezalocha, Muel, Paniza, Tosos y Villanueva de Huerva. Most of the vineyards are located between the Huerva and Jalón rivers and the varieties authorised by the regulations of the Board for the Designation of Origin are: Garnachatinta, Mazuela, Tempranillo, Monastrell, Juan Ibáñez, Cabernet Sauvignon, Macabeo, Garnacha blanca, Parellada and Roman Muscatel.

The activity of Bodegas San Valero, which has always been closely related to our ancient tradition, began in 1945 and gathered 60 vine growers from this county. After some years during which bulk production of wines took priority, San Valero evolved until it reached the production we know today. Bodegas San Valero pioneered the introduction of bottling in Aragón in 1962. Its continuous process of improvement led San Valero to adopt the so-called "controlled grape-harvest" in 1983, as part of its unstoppable quest for total quality. That same year Bodegas Gran Ducay was founded for the production of cava.

Today, the BSV group comprises Bodegas San Valero and Bodegas Gran Ducay.

[General Information]