🍷 Montilla-Moriles

Montilla-Moriles is a wine area in the province of Córdoba, in Andalusia in southern Spain. It makes wine similar to sherry but gets there differently.

The main grape is Pedro Ximénez. Summers are very hot, and the berries gather so much sugar that the wine reaches 14-15% alcohol by itself, with no spirit added. In Jerez, by contrast, the wine is usually fortified. The soils are pale and chalky and hold moisture well. The wine is aged in barrels under the solera system, and in the past also in large clay vessels called tinajas.

Various styles come from this area: dry fino-type wines, nutty amontillado and oloroso, and the very sweet Pedro Ximénez wine. The name "amontillado" even derives from Montilla. The wines resemble sherry and Málaga but have their own character. They are part of Spanish wine but less known abroad, so they often cost less than sherry. They are served chilled with tapas and appetisers.