Appears in
Oxford Companion to Wine

By Jancis Robinson

Published 2006

  • About

Denominación de Origen Calificada, is the highest Spanish wine quality denomination, the elite of do/dop, reserved for regions complying with certain conditions including above-average grape prices, and particularly stringent quality controls. rioja was the first Spanish region to be awarded DOCa status, in 1991, followed by priorat in 2002.