Vineyards, wines and wineries

The origins of the vineyards date before the settlement of the Romans and they have a long tradition.

The exploitation of the famous vineyards acted as a catalyser of the handicrafts and traders, and the construction boom which the city had in the 13th century. Especially the decade of 1530-1570  left more traces of remarkable buildings, cemented by the wealth that the wine conquered on the new markets and the increscent in price as a result of the colonization of the American Continent.

Literature also confirms the importance of these wines with the writings of famous authors from antiquity until today (Arcipreste de Hita, Quevedo...) , in the same way foreign scholars and critics praise its virtues.

As a result of the importance of the cultivation of the vine and the production of its wines throughout the history, there are countless wineries that pierce the basement of the old town, showing in its facades the hidden heritage through a unique elements: the vents. These wineries are the seeds of the present.

The Regulating  Council of the Denomination of Origin of Toro from 1987 guarantees the quality of more than fifty wineries that are located in Toro and its region.

The history of Toro and the wine are conjoined in time and space. You cannot understand the history without finding a place for a wine and you cannot (not to) mention the wine without the history. There is a cultural and spiritual dependency linking this area to wine. The River Duero has special roll: this river is leaving its water so that among other things grows wine.

History

Before the arrival of the Romans that it tends to be the start of viticulture in other places, wine was already produced in Toro.
In the middle age the pilgrims of the Camino de Santiago explained the wonders of the wine of Toro. There is also the belief that the first wine that reached the American Continent in Columbus´ship was from Toro because its substances and its long duration.