This is a really original venture in Andalucía, both for its innovative business development and its pioneering recovery of virtually extinct grape varieties that used to be grown in the region.
La Melonera is located in Serranía de Ronda at an elevation between 650 and 940 metres. Out of the 200 hectares in the estate, 15 are under vine. It was designed to combine a top-quality bodega in a region renowned for its wines since Roman times, but which gradually lost lustre after phylloxera, with a luxury residential complex with vineyards. Owners are given the choice of either making their own wine or entrust its production to the winery.
In an attempt to raise awareness of the project, in 2008 the estate held Wine Creator, a high-profile wine symposium attracting prominent international wine critics and professionals like Jancis Robinson, Michel Rolland, Peter Sisseck and Michel Bettane.
La Melonera is the brainchild of entrepreneur Jorge Viladomiu Peitx and his cousin Javier Suqué. The group Perelada, of which Suqué is president, manages the distribution of the wines.
The choice of grapes was based on a seminal 19th century work by botanist Simón de Rojas Clemente y Rubio called Ensayo sobre las variedades de vid común que vegetan en Andalucía (Essay on common grape varieties grown in Andalusia). The distinctive Melonera, with its original striped skin that resembles a melon, lent its name to the bodega. Other varieties grown on the estate include whites Doradilla, Moscatel de Grano Menudo, Pedro Ximénez and Vijiriega, and reds Tintilla de Rota, Garnacha, Romé and Blasco. Most of the plant material was sourced from Rancho de la Merced, the vine-growing research centre in Jerez de la Frontera (Cádiz). International grape varieties like Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah are also found in the property but the main focus has shifted towards indigenous cultivars.
La Melonera benefits from significant day-night temperature differences. The vineyard is farmed organically. One of the highlights for any visitor are the peculiar vine training methods developed by former consultant Josep Lluís Pérez (Mas Martinet) from Priorat to maximise the quality of young vines, particularly a double trellis system and the hoop structure to guide the plant. Winemaking is carried out with a minimum of manipulation, as the diversity of grape varieties provides useful tools to balance the wines. According to technical director, Ana de Castro, Tintilla de Rota boasts excellent acidity thus avoiding the need for chemical corrections.
The range of wines starts with La Encina del Inglés white (€7,5, 10,000 bottles, Moscatel plus small additions of Doradilla and Pedro Ximénez) and red (€11, 50% Tintilla de Rota plus varying blends of international varieties). Next up is Payoya Negra (€17, 10,000 bottles), a structured red blend of Tintilla, Romé and Syrah. It is named after a local breed of goat whose milk is used to produce a highly prized cheese.
The top red MHV has been replaced by Yo Solo (€45) and remains an experimental wine meant to test the performance of different grape varieties or blends. The expressive 2017 vintage, for example, combines equal amounts of Tintilla de Rota and Blasco and displays notes of aromatic herbs, ink and black fruit on the nose and bright acidity. The name is a tribute to Bernardo Gálvez, an eminent figure from Malaga who fought in the American War of Independence and to whom King Carlos III granted the honour of displaying the words "yo solo" (I, alone) on his coat of arms.
