The highlands around Spain's capital Madrid were not on the radar of discerning wine lovers; if at all, they were wine drinkers who could make friends with coarse, rustic wines. Yet the conditions for top winegrowing here are in no way worse than in such famous regions as Ribera del Duero. The terroir consists partly of granite, the climate is warm and dry, but is tempered by the cooling influences of the nearby Sierra de Gredos. And the vineyards are mostly located several hundred meters above sea level. Businessman J. Fernando Cornejo thought there must be something to be made of this and founded Bodegas Maranones in San Martin de Valdeiglesias, around 70 kilometres from Madrid, in 2008. Before the first wine was produced, however, a mammoth task had to be accomplished, as the vineyards were run down, as in many parts of the highlands, and first had to be restored. Today, J. Fernando Cornejo cultivates around 20 hectares together with his oenologist Fernando Garcia Allonso, and does so very carefully by hand, with the friendly assistance of mules when necessary. The main grape varieties cultivated are the rather rare Albillo Real for white wine and Garnacha, which dominates the red wines, occasionally supplemented by a small addition of indigenous grape varieties such as Morate. For their two white wines and five red wines, the two have also developed a quality pyramid based on the Burgundian model, starting with local wines, which are intended to reflect the regional character, through specific origins with their expression of the terroir, to precious and rare single-vineyard wines. New wood is not used so as not to disguise the characteristics of the terroir and the grape variety. With these unique and original wines, Bodegas Marnones has managed to establish itself among the best in Spain, but with yields of around 10 - 30 hectolitres per hectare, it is not easy to find them.
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