Bodegas Navarro Lopez, Valdepeñas, Castilla y Léon, Spain

BODEGAS NAVARRO LOPEZ; WITH LOVE FOR THE SPANISH SUN

Bodegas Navarra Lopez was founded in 1904 as a modest family business of Don Juan Sanchez Megía . The winery is located in the town of Valdepeñas and focuses mainly on 100% Cépage wines (wines made from a single grape variety). The winery has a tradition of over 100 years Don Juan Sánchez Megia founded Bodegas Navarro López in 1904. The original company is traditionally located in the town of Valdepeñas , but for environmental reasons it was decided in 2001 to build a new company, just outside the city, right in the middle of the vineyards. The immediate advantage of this was that one was closer to the grapes and could keep a closer eye on it. Lines to the wine cellars are shorter, so vineyard work that was needed could now also be done at night (or late at night). The involvement in the vineyards is still a great advantage for Navarro Lopez today; not only is the coordination and maintenance very sharp and meticulous, but also during the harvest period it is a great advantage; keeping an eye on the growing fruit. This results in wines with finesse .

THE VALLEY OF THE ROCKS

Val de Peñas literally means 'Valley of the Rocks'. Once it was Doña Beringuela, the mother of Ferdinand III, who founded the city and took its name from the rocky landscape. Even deeper back in history; the "Cistercian monks" originally developed the wine growing in Valdepeñas and gave it a livelihood. Even King Philip II, the King of Castile and Lord of the Netherlands was very charmed by the wine growing in this area; The Valdepeñas wines were frequently served at the court in Madrid. Valdepeñas is located in the southern part of central Spain and is situated on a plateau 700 meters above sea level. The soil is sandy-colored, lots of clay and above all rocks. The clayey soil is actually under this rocky soil. In the summer it can get quite warm in Valdepeñas. Sun-drenched vineyards can sometimes reach temperatures of up to 40 degrees. In combination with little rainfall, you can imagine that the vines sometimes have a hard time. The winters, on the other hand, are harsh, sometimes freezing 10 degrees below zero. These temperature differences are quite a challenge.

CASTILLE AND LÉON; THE CRADLE OF WINE

Castilla y León, pronounced in Dutch, is located northwest of Madrid and borders the world-famous Rioja region. Castilla y León is one of the most fascinating wine regions of Spain and was completely unknown just 25 years ago. The capital of the region is Valladolid . Castilla y León has a Mediterranean climate that is much less influenced by the Mediterranean Sea than the more eastern places in Spain. As a result, the temperature extremes that were explained earlier occur and the average temperatures here are somewhat further apart. Nowadays, modern and highly sought-after wines are made here. The soil is poor, the climate is extreme, with short, harsh winters and long, dry summers. The grapes have to fight for every drop and that makes their juice rich and concentrated. Castilla y León has nine DOs (read: recognized wine regions), of which Ribera del Duero, Rueda , Toro and Bierzo are the most important. Red wines are most common in Castilla y Leon, with Tempranillo as the absolute king grape. This grape variety forms the basis of almost all fine wines from this region.