The newest Vino de Pago wine from Spain is Abadia Retuerta.

It should be noted that Spain created the status of "Vino de Pago" in 2003, which confirms special vineyards (pagos) as Protected Appellations of Origin. Although it is not a mandatory requirement, this status is usually pursued by individual wineries in order to obtain protected status for an individual vineyard on their property.

This is the case at the Abadia Retuerta winery, which covers an area of 700 hectares, of which 180 hectares are occupied by vineyards. Although it is in the Duero Valley, its location is within the Sardon de Duero, west of Quintanilla de Onésimo, a municipality that is one of the boundaries of the DO Ribera del Duero winery. This is why Abadia Retuerta is not part of DO and has continued to produce its wines under the Vino de la Tierra de Castilla y León appellation, which covers an area larger than neighboring Portugal.

Abadia Reterta CEO Enrique Valero told Decanter magazine, "Although we started the process of registering Vino de Pago eight years ago, we actually started it 25 years ago, when we instilled a philosophy of working with the land to restore what was here nine centuries ago. "

The unique site where the winery is located was originally the Convent of Santa Maria de Retuerta, founded in 1146. As in other Christian monasteries on the Iberian Peninsula, the monks were involved in winemaking and since becoming owners in 1988, the current owners have worked to restore the history of the winery and the monastery is now a hotel complex with several restaurants.

History has played an important role in establishing the uniqueness of the winery.

In addition, the Protected Appellation of Origin paperwork calls for the use of 16 other different varieties, as Valero explains, "We are experimenting with different varieties to predict future climate change.

About the reasons for seeking certification for his winery in a way that only 22 other producers in Spain have done, Valero said: "I'll be honest, we've really made life difficult for ourselves by doing it, but you need to have your own model in this industry. Ultimately, I want us to be defined by the place of Abadia Retuerta, which is why we have strived for and finally achieved Vino de Pago status. "