Piedra Luenga Amontillado Sherry

The Robles family has been dedicated to producing sherry style wines in Montilla region of Andalucia since 1927. In the late 1990s, the third generation of the family took over the reins of the winery with a clear understanding that, in order to progress they must also reflect on the past and the best of traditions. Siblings Francisco and Pilar knew that marrying the most worthy of their parents' and grandparents' ideology with the most appropriate modern technology would yield the best, most sustainable results. Today, this principle guides every aspect of winemaking at Bodegas Robles. In the south of Spain (with temperatures which vary between -5º and 45ºC) pests remain at such low levels that they have never used more than a minimum number of preventive treatments and the vineyards have long been close to organic. Soils comprise white and sandy limestone with more chalk (Albarizo) which retains winter rains in the best wine growing area. This is the higher ground in the Sierra de Montilla and the Moriles Alto. 90% of the grape production is the Pedro Ximenez variety, be it to make a bone dry Fino or an richly sweet Oloroso. On their 32 hectares of vineyards they produce their wines using natural compost and fertilizers instead of chemical substances and artificial fertilizers. The aim is smaller harvests of high quality grapes expressing the full character of the vine variety. Their approach is quite straightforward: grow the most intense and flavourful organic grapes possible, guide the natural process and draw all the fruit’s richness into the wine. With the experience acquired over three generations, the family have learned an important lesson: the more we care for the land, the better the wine. Bodegas Robles’ vineyards have the air of a wildly romantic garden, overrun by a layer of lavender, poppies, clover and wildflowers, buzzing with bees and other insects. In the winery, all wines are fermented with natural yeasts. These indigenous yeasts are present in the soil of the vineyards and reaches the winery on the skins of the grapes. That is why the ecological care of their vineyard is so important: the yeasts are primarily responsible for ensuring that the wine expresses itself fully. Bodegas Robles has been awarded dozens of prizes for the production of their wines, including their organic range 'Piedra Luenga', one of the few certified organic wines in Andalucia. In fact Bodegas Robles were the first wine estate in the Montilla region to be certified organic back in 1999. The wines are certified by Comité Andaluz de Agricultura Ecologica, Calidad Certificada as well as EU certification.