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The Wines of Murcia, Part 1

It's not often that I turn up anywhere dead on time. A few minutes late is quite the norm, and if that's not the case then it's likely to be more than a few minutes - maybe quarter or half an hour. Especially if the journey from origin to destination involves a combination of aeroplane, train and tube as it often does when travelling to tastings in London. But even when tastings are more local, a few minutes late is, for me, perhaps too often the norm.

But this tasting of the wines of Murcia in Spain was a little different. Scheduled to start at midday, I found myself ascending in a lift towards said tasting at 11:58 am. Despite the atrocious weather - it was absolutely bucketing down outside - I was on time. You might even say I was a minute or two early, but I would argue that by the time I had stepped through the sliding doors and then located the event it was likely to be midday exactly. Indeed, as I exited the lift I was shown by a doorman into a lounge area populated by relaxed and suntanned Spaniards, sipping coffee and chattering loudly, which reassuringly suggested I was in the right place. I checked my watch - midday. I was on time!

The doorman then asked me to wait in the lounge, and so I dutifully waited....

....and then I waited some more.

After some time the Spanish crowd disappeared - confusingly in a variety of directions - and I was left alone with a handful of other lost souls, who were busily tapping away at laptops or on the phone. Where was the tasting? Starting to become frustrated, and determined to turn what was looking increasingly like a wasted afternoon into something useful, I headed out to explore, discovering in the process the roof garden of Edinburgh's Glasshouse hotel, the venue for this event. And very quickly I found what that confused doorman had failed to show me; a rooftop conservatory-like construction crammed full of Murcian wines, Murcian winemakers and eager tasters (who had ascended using a different lift and thus encountered a more competent hotel employee who actually showed them to the tasting).

Locating UK Murcian PR man Adrian Jones within, I sent him on a rescue mission to retrieve those other misdirected tasters from the lounge area, and then quickly surveyed the action in the room; strangely, despite having been twiddling my thumbs for the past half hour, not a drop had yet been poured. The kick-off, with a blind tasting of Murcian wines to be led by John Radford was, I realised, delayed.

This business of arriving on time is clearly over-rated.

About Murcia

As was the case with my exploration of Navarra in 2008 this tasting of Murcian wines was a fine opportunity for me to get acquainted with an unfamiliar region and its wines. We are a little further south here, Murcia being a Mediterranean coastal region lying between Valencia and Almeria. This is Monastrell country, this variety (known more widely as Mourvèdre or in some quarters Mataro) being dominant in a mix with Tempranillo and a number of internationals, including Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Petit Verdot representing Bordeaux, but also from the Rhône - and perhaps therefore more in keeping with the focus on Mourvèdre/Monastrell - Grenache and Syrah.

The Spaniards naturally lay claim to Monastrell as one of their own, and local history would have it that the vine in question originated from within the vineyards of the Catholic monasteries of Catalonia. How it travelled from here to the Rhône Valley is a mystery, and indeed some, doubtful about the Murcian claims, would have it making the journey in the opposite direction. Whatever its exact origins, Monastrell is the backbone of all Murcia's wine industry, the variety bottled sometimes in isolation, but very often blended with the aforementioned international varieties.

There are three principle regions within Murcia, as illustrated in the map here, with Jumilla perhaps the most significant of the three. The vineyards tend to run not across the coastal plains but slightly inland at a higher altitude through the valleys of the mountains, typically between 400 and 900 metres above sea level. Just to the northeast of Jumilla is Yecla, known as Hecula in Roman times, a region with similar characteristics although perhaps a little more arid. Then a little to the southwest of these two is the lesser known Bullas, a slightly wetter and cooler region thanks to the proximity of the sea. In all three it is the aforementioned Monastrell that dominates. The tasting today was largely to focus on Jumilla, with lone representatives from Bullas, in the shape of Bodegas del Rosario, and from Yecla, represented by Bodegas Castaño. Unfortunately the latter of these two could not attend, so aside from the Rosario estate this was very much a Jumilla roadshow.

Murcian Opinion

Putting aside two admittedly rather good whites and one Monastrell-based rosado, this was a tasting of exclusively red wines, with a focus on Monastrell, although occasionally there were other varieties found in isolation, including Syrah and - remarkably - Petit Verdot. There doesn't seem to be one uniform style that defines the region, the tasting showcasing many different expressions of Monastrell. Some were light and rather stony, as if from a very cool climate, good wines for charcuterie or other unfussy occasions. Some were very straightforward but a little richer in terms of flavour and texture, nice wines for simple dining, such as the 2009 Honora Vera Organic from Bodegas Juan Gil, whereas some showed more what I had expected, wines with a tannic backbone and lots of sweet fruit, like the wines of Bodegas Luzón. One or two raised the game a little further, displaying savoury complexity and a less fruit-orientated style. The 2006 Altos de Luzó, from Bodegas Luzón again, was particularly promising in this respect, and without doubt was my favourite wine from the tasting. One feature many of the wines possessed and which will appeal to oak-o-phobes was a focus on the raw materials, with the time spent in oak limited to just 4 months in many of the wines, sometimes none at all. Only a handful spent up to a year in oak, and of these only one or two expressed this with overt vanilla and coconut character, the remainder handling it well. Of course then there were the sweet styles, fashioned using mutage, of which one was rather good and one simply top-heavy. On the whole though, this was a good and fascinating showing of wines from the region.

Before we reach my notes, it is worth noting the ability of the wines to handle extended aging, as professed by speaker John Radford. After leading a very valuable blind tasting of ten wines (which I must confess I eschewed in favour of tasting the full range of wines from the tables, where I could chat with the winemakers), Radford produced a rare bottle of Murcian Monastrell from a solera begun in the 1925 vintage. Before the thirsty, Monastrell-craving crowd Radford savoured a mouthful, then allowed the precious nectar to slip down his throat before licking his lips, his beaming face transmitting to all before him the pleasure that this prestigious and venerable wine afforded him.

It was clearly a delicious libation.

He turned to his audience, forty tongues hanging out before him, each one imbued with anticipation and desire, all salivating at the prospect of the wine. And he proclaimed, with a deadpan, monotone voice,

"We only have one very expensive bottle. Sorry, you can't taste it".

The notes on the wines we were allowed to taste begin below. (3/8/10)

The Wines of Murcia Part 1 - Bullas

These wines were tasted in June 2010. The Yecla estate Bodegas Castaño was a no-show, so the only representative from outside Jumilla was Bodegas del Rosario. I present these wines here; see part two for my notes on the wines of Jumilla.Click to locate stockists.

Bullas was only recognised as a DO in 1994 and even now Bodegas del Rosario remains the only winery within the region.

Bodegas del Rosario Alto Real Monastrell (Bullas) 2009: This is 100% Monastrell, and just about the only wine here under screwcap. Distant, rather attractive fruit on the nose. Rather a bold substance on palate. It has fruit but in a very compact and mean style, with overt structure and again the alcohol seems to show despite the wine only having 13.5%. Rather unflattering style on the palate. Hard wine. 12/20

Bodegas del Rosario Lorca Monastrell Selección (Bullas) 2007: Pure Monastrell, 4 months in oak, alcohol 14%. Rather distant fruit again, with a seaweed and seashell component. Similarly disinterested on the palate, a stony substance and texture at first, then a more oily presence of fruit on top. There is something appealing about the texture here, and it has freshness on its side, but it is still a rather light and off-key style I think. 13.5/20

Bodegas del Rosario Lorca Syrah (Bullas) 2008: A pure selection of Syrah, alcohol 14%. Rather attractive sweet fruit on the nose, not very intense but fairly bright and clean. Stony-edged. This carries through on the palate which has the textural quality of sucking a stone, with a little Syrah fruit alongside. Decent acidity. Lacks flesh, something that seems a feature across the range here, but it has a clean and bright quality. 14/20

Bodegas del Rosario 3000 Años (Bullas) 2006: The name reflects a local heritage of 3000 years of viticulture. An even blend of Monastrell and Syrah, 14 months in oak. Very dark colour here. Dense, sweet, gamey, savoury fruit with touches of tobacco and smoke. Certainly a world apart from the other wines in the range. The palate seems a little top heavy, an incisive structure at the bottom but then a teetering tower of sweet and simple fruit on top. This character carries through in the midpalate, the soft fruit sitting uncomfortably here with the 14.5% alcohol. It does come together with a little time in the mouth so perhaps it will do the same in the cellar. 15.5-16.5+?/20

• See part two for my notes on the wines of Jumilla.