Our final winery visit during our day in Ronda was to Bodega Los Bujeos, a small winery that is integrated into the beautiful rural hotel, El Juncal, just outside the town of Ronda.  El Juncal belongs to the same family that owns one of the most famous restaurants in Ronda:  Tragabuches.  The project was conceived as a dual project from the being:  a luxury rural hotel that offers a serene escape from the stresses of modern life and a small, artesanal winery that could produce some top notch wines. Lola Jimenez, the owner, was totally honest with us when she admitted that the hotel part was conceived in order to help finance the winery part…we all know how long it takes to make a profit form a winery!  Whatever the original intention, the result is spectacular…escapist luxury accommodations amongst the beauty of the vineyards! 

El Juncal is a beautiful blend of modern design and conveniences built into the traditional framework of an 18th century traditional cortijo manor.  The winery is tiny and is simply one of the wings of the building.  While we were there, finishing touches were being put on a beautiful tasting room that overlooks the winery and serves as a beautiful transition space between the hotel and the winery.  El Juncal and Bodega Los Bujeos offer a total enotourism escape.  You can check out more info on the hotel at:  http://www.eljuncal.com/index.htm

But let’s get to the nitty gritty…the wines!  There are only 9 hectares of vines, divided between Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Petit Verdot, Syrah, and Garnacha.  The winemaker is a young Chilean enologist, Rodrigo Nieme, who worked 10 years previously in Chile at Bodegas Santa Rita.  He is very passionate about his goals and honest about the fact that he has a long way to go before he makes his ideal wine.  He believes that some of his varieties will ultimately shine in the Ronda climate while others will fall by the wayside. 

A nice personal side to the story is that Rodrigo’s girlfriend is the enologist Bibi García from Cortijo Los Aguilares…they met working in Chile and he followed her back to Spain!

The wines here are intense and structured….they can withstand lots of bottle age and decantation.  We tasted two wines:

1. Apasos 2004:  This is the softer, more commercial wine, though still quite firm.  Offers a lot of black fruit complexity at a great value 11 euro price. 60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah, 10% Merlot, 5% Cabenet Sauvignon, 5% Cabernet Franc. 12 months in 95% French oak, 5% American oak. 

2. Pasos Largos 2005:  60% Cabernet Sauvignon, 20% Syrah, 15% Merlot, 5% Petit Verdot.  12 months in 100% French oak.  100% hand-picked grapes.  This is a more intense, complex, mineral wine, with loads of black fruit and vanilla aromas.  The tannins on the 2005 were a little too intense, though ripe, and the wine could use a little more time in the bottle to soften the finish a touch.  About 20-25 euros retail in Madrid…both of these wines are available at Bodega Santa Cecilia.