Bodegas Luzón

Bodegas Luzón is situated in the south east of Spain, north of Murcia. The climate is continental, influenced by the Mediterranean sea, so warm days, not a lot of rain and fairly cool nights, which is ideal for growing grapes with good ripeness and sugar levels, while still maintaining freshness. The winery was established in 1841 by Don José de Molina on his return from the Philippines where he was the army commander on the island of Luzón, and it then passed down through his family until 2005 when it was bought by the Fuertes family who have since undertaken considerable investment in the winery. There are now 300 ha of vineyards directly owned, with a further 1,200 managed by the winery. Monastrell (Mourvèdre) is the main variety, supported mainly by Garnacha with some Tempranillo and Syrah for the reds, Macabeo and Airén for the whites. The grapes are sorted and totally destemmed before fermentation which is mainly in stainless steel after being cooled to prevent any spontaneous fermentation. After malolactic fermentation, the top wines are matured in oak for varying lengths of time, the younger wines bottled early to keep freshness and fruit after a light filtration. Although this is one of the oldest wineries in the region, methods are modern and progressive with care taken to reach environmental standards. Some organic wines and some without added sulphites are also being produced.