Bodegas Robles SA, Montilla (Córdoba) (Spain)

The Robles family has been dedicated to wine making in Montilla (Southern Spain) since 1927. In the late 1990s, the third generation takes over the winery and understands the need to incorporate organic viticulture and work with indigenous yeasts into the tradition of the winery.Our approach is quite straightforward: grow the most intense and flavorful organic grapes that you can, guide the natural process and draw all the fruit’s richness into the wine.With the experience acquired over three generations, we have learned an important lesson: the more we care for land, the better our wine.And if awards have something to say something on the matter, it seems that we have achieved the objective:Agriculture and Fisheries Awards 2017Andalusian Regional Ministry of Agriculture and FisheriesAward for Commitment to Society and the Environment 2017III Edition of the Wine Tourism Awards “Wine Routes of Spain”Spanish Association of Wine Cities (Acevin) and Turespaña (Ministry of Industry, Energy and Tourism of Spain)Best Organic Production in Spain in 2014Ministry of Agriculture, Food and the Environment.Best Organic Company in Spain in 2006Biodiversity Foundation and the Ministry of the Environment of SpainVINEYARD WORKAt first glance, 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. However, like those meticulously planned gardens, there is nothing accidental about our vineyard. It is the result of years of research and it involves selecting a wide variety of native, short-rooted plants that serve to trap nitrogen in the soil around the vines.We keep an ongoing dialogue and exchange of knowledge between the winery, the University and several national and international research centers. We have several long-term tracking studies underway and we have completed projects on the impacts of environmental factors and cultural practices and their contributions to wine quality.