Spanish wine laws created the Denominacion de Origen (DO) system in 1932 and later revised in 1970. The system shares similarities with the hierarchical Appellation d'origine controlee (AOC) system of France, Portugal's Denominacao de Origem Controlada (DOC) and Italy's Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC). As of 2009, there were 77 Quality Wine areas across Spain. In addition there is Denominacion de Origen Calificada (DOCa or DOQ in Catalan) status for DOs that have a consistent track record for quality.

There are currently three DOCa / DOQ regions: Rioja, Priorat and Ribera del Duero. Each DO has a Consejo Regulador, which acts as a governing control body that enforces the DO regulations and standards involving viticultural and winemaking. These regulations govern everything from the types of grapes that are permitted to be planted, maximum yields that can be harvested; the minimum length of time that the wine must be aged and what information is required on the wine label. Wineries that are seeking to have their wine sold under DO or DOC status must submit their wines to the Consejo Regulador laboratory and tasting panel for testing and evaluation. Wines that have been granted DO/DOC status will feature the regional stamp of the Consejo Regulador on the label.

Following Spain's acceptance into the European Union, Spanish wine laws were brought in line to be more consistent with other European wine systems. One development was a 5-tier classification system that is administered by each independent region. Non-independent areas or wine regions whose boundaries overlap with other independent communities (such as Cava, Rioja and Jumilla) are administered by the Instituto Nacional de Denominaciones de Origen (INDO) based in Madrid. The 5-tier classifications, starting from the bottom, include:

Vino de Mesa (VdM) - Vinos de la Tierra (VdlT) - Vino de Calidad Producido en Region Determinada (VCPRD) - Denominacion de Origen (DO) - Denominacion de Origen Calificada (DOCa/DOQ).