British expats on a mission to simplify Spanish wine

Spain produces exceptionally good quality wine at more than affordable prices. But with around 150 native grape varieties and terms like “denominación de origen”, it can be difficult to get your head round it all. So, two Brits have taken it on themselves to make the whole thing much easier with their online wine store, Simply Spanish Wine.

Simply Spanish Wine aims to give people a basic understanding of Spanish wine so they can make more informed choices about which wines to buy and enjoy. It also offers a carefully curated list of wine1s for sale which represent the different styles and regions Spain has to offer, and which give wine lovers in Spain access to affordable, high-quality Spanish wines.

The project is the brainchild of long-term residents Matthew Desoutter and Ben Giddings. Both have been passionate about Spanish wine for ages and wanted to share their passion with other international residents.

“When you go into a supermarket, you’re faced with lots of bottles of wine, but very little to help you choose,” says Matthew. “You can look at the label, but unless you know what to expect from a certain grape, or how one area of the country differs from another, you can’t really make an informed choice.”

“So, we decided to launch an online wine store that makes it easier to choose a great bottle of wine. We offer a focused range of craft wines from family-run vineyards. And our store is built around easy-to-understand resources about grapes, regions and winemaking techniques that help our customers choose a wine that they are going to get the most out of.”

“We try not to go over the top,” adds Ben. “We don’t want people to feel overwhelmed or talked-down-to. We want to keep it simple – hence the name. And by explaining a bit more about Spain’s finest product, we hope we’re helping people to integrate more into the culture of this amazing country.”