Taste the excellence of Andalusia Extra Virgin olive oil tasting and discover the sherry wine styles of Montilla-Moriles, the hidden gem of Spanish wines. Visit a local oil mill in the morning where you’ll experience olive oil tasting over 3 different olive oil varieties.
Enjoy the impressive views of the vineyards, before the visit to a Boutique Wine Estate where we include a light lunch with the local PX wines (dry and sweet) paired with local food.
Outside of the Province of Málaga, easily accessible from Málaga in about 1h and 30 min driving, there’s the area of Montilla and Moriles, 2 small towns in the Province of Córdoba which are popular among the finest wine lovers for the ageing and production of vinos generosos, sherry style wines, from the driest to the sweetest ones, based on PX variety exclusively.
Along with the wines from Jerez de la Frontera, those from Montilla/Moriles are ranked among the best gourmet wines in the world, since the characteristics of these special wines are able to be paired with the flavours of all the international cuisines. This is the excellence of Spanish wines.
Córdoba is by itself a lovely city to visit thanks to the incredible UNESCO site of the Mezquita or the quaint Jewish district.
In Andalusia we account more than 500 million olive trees, therefore Córdoba is considered the world capital of Extra Virgin Olive Oil tasting and production and it’s mandatory, a stop in a local Almazara (Olive Oil Mill) to allow the customers to learn more about extra virgin olive oil, the different characteristics of the olives and the appreciation of the variety of flavours and aromas released by each olive oil.
Afterwards we move towards Montilla/Moriles where the scenery changes into white limestone hills, called albariza, where only the PX vines are planted.
Like for Jerez, also here the albariza is a key factor which enhances the complexity of these special wines. Inside the wine cellars, there are 3 different ways to age the wines.
First – production of vinos de tinaja or young wines, aged inside large clay vats, similar to the Georgian kovri.
Second and mystique one – Velo de Flor. This is also called biological ageing. The wine ages under a veil of yeast produced naturally inside the barrels, living for several years in contact with the wine, releasing acetaldehydes and imparting yeast flavours and minerality to the wines.
The wines produced in this way are called Fino.
Third – unique ageing system invented in Jerez at the end of the XVIII century, called Solera and Criaderas.
This system is based on different scales or lines of barrels one on top of the other.
The line of barrels at the bottom of the scale is called Solera (the closest to the soil) and it’s where it’s stored the oldest wine which will be bottled afterwards. On top of this line, you find the different criaderas, nurseries. The criadera on top of the solera is called first criadera and it has a younger wine than the solera. This wine refills the solera throughout the year to maintain the same quality and property of the solera.
The second criadera refills the first one, the third refills the second and so on. In some wine cellars we account for more than 10 criaderas.
The wines produced with this system receive different names:
Amontillado (partly aged with velo de flor and subsequently in solera and criadera for more than 30 years in some cases)
Oloroso (aged exclusively in solera and criadera for even more than 30 years)
Palo Cortado (very short period in biological ageing and the rest in solera and criadera)
Differences and similarities between Jerez and Montilla/Moriles wines:
Similarities:
Albariza soils
Velo de Flor ageing
Criaderas and Solera ageing
Differences:
Jerez wines are fortified with wine alcohol.
Montilla/Moriles wines the alcohol content is naturally produced during fermentation, no fortification.
Jerez main variety is Palomino Fino
Montilla/Moriles variety is PX, Pedro Ximén
Please let us know your dietary/food requirements upon booking. Children underage (18 years old) are welcome on tour.
You can book each tour as late as 1 week prior to departure, via email or whatsapp.
Cancellation is free between 7 and 3 days before departure.
Any cancellation after day 3 before departure will be charged 100% of the total cost of the trip.
Useful links:
www.andalucia.org
www.malaga.eu
https://victoriaordonez.com/
http://lospatiosdebeatas.com/
https://www.turismoderonda.es/
www.enoticket.com
www.winedering.com
8.30 AM Meeting point at the hotel and departure to Northern Andalusia.
10.00 AM Arrival at an almazara (Olive Oil Mill) for a visit and tasting of 3 different kind of extra virgin olive oils (1h aprox tour + tasting).
12.30 AM Visit the vineyards and cellars of a Boutique Wine Estate in the area of Montilla-Moriles. Light lunch is included with wine and food pairings, through the distinctive wine styles (dry to sweet) from the criadera and solera systems base on local grape variety PX (Pedro Ximenez).
2.30 PM Return to Málaga.
4.00 PM Arrival at the hotel.
We strongly recommend to be ready at the meeting point 15 min prior departure in order to leave on time.
