The Jumilla Wine Route: the domain of the Monastrell grape variety

07/07/2012

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Although strictly speaking the Jumilla Wine Routefocuses on this particular town in Murcia and its surroundings, the appellationwhich gives the route its name also covers another six municipalities in the neighbouring province of Albacete. The characteristics of the soil and climate, common to all the regions under DO Jumilla, are ultimately what have given rise to a wine region whose irrefutable trademark is the Monastrell grape variety.

The region has been a crossroads between Andalucía, La Mancha and Valencia since time immemorial, and lies on a high plain at an altitude of 350 to 650 metres above sea-level, which, geographically speaking, represents the transition between the Castilian plateau and the Mediterranean Eastern Seaboard. Its predominantly limestone soils are poor in organic material, while the climate is dry with around 300mm of annual rainfall and more than 3,000 hours of sunlight. Winters are cold with frequent frosts while summers are very hot and dry. All of which constitutes ideal conditions for the growth of a very special grape variety, Monastrell, the region’s native strain, which occupies more than 80 per cent of the appellation’s total vineyard land area.

Monastrell— known internationally as Mourvèdre — is a low-yield, small-berry, thick-skinned strain, with compact grape-clusters. This variety produces potent, expressive wines, with a characteristic purplish colour and abundant fruity aromas. Rich and mellow in the mouth, these wines boast an average ABV of 12 to 14%. Since the implementation of modern winemaking methods with the aim of reducing oxidisation, in the mid-90s, the wines made under DO Jumilla have taken a spectacular leap of quality and elegance, and now form part of the select group of Spanish wines which have scored high marks in international competitions and wine guides. Of the more than 40 million litres of wine produced per campaign, a third is targeted at export to around 30 countries.

The types of wines currently made in the region are: smooth, full-bodied young wines; the so-called, and highly appreciated, ‘semi-crianzas’ or young oak-aged wines, which are aged for around six months; sweet wines, and of course Crianzas and Reservas, which express the concentration of the Monastrell grape variety to the full.