Bodegas Luzon winery in the Spanish wine region of Jumilla Murcia

Bodegas Luzon is one of the oldest and largest vineyards in the Spanish municipality of Jumilla, located in the Region of Murcia.

Jumilla is a charming town and municipality in southeastern Spain, in the Murcia region. This sunny and dry part of Spain is known for its stable weather, abundant sunshine throughout the year, and picturesque hills, especially the beautiful Sierra del Carche, Sierra del Buey, and Sierra de la Pila.

However, Jumilla is primarily a land of vineyards and the production of wine, which can be found in almost every country in Europe and a significant part of the world.

Murcia Bodegas Luzon winery in Jumilla and its history

The Luzon vineyard takes its name from a distant island in the Philippine archipelago. In this remote, far-reaching place, it served as the homeland for Don Jose Molina, the commander of the Royal Army of Spain and the founder of the Luzon vineyard.

After years of service and the conclusion of his military career, Jose Molina decided to return to his beloved Spain. He purchased land, on which he built an estate and began cultivating noble grape varieties. In honour of the Philippine island where he spent many years of his life, he named the estate Finca Luzon.

Thanks to friendship and collaboration with the owners of nearby vineyards, he quickly honed his skills in winemaking. Year after year, the wine gained popularity and earned the respect of connoisseurs throughout Spain and later in Europe. After Don Jose’s death in 1863, the land and entire estate passed into the hands of his eldest daughter, who expanded the family business and, just before her death, passed it on to her daughter. Since 1916, Bodegas Luzon has been one of the largest and best-known wine-producing companies in this part of the country.

Unfortunately, the Molina family’s female line expired in 1980, and the estate, along with the struggling winemaking business, fell into the hands of the Fuertes family, generations of whom were connected to winemakings. The new owner, captivated by the vineyard’s history, decided to preserve the Luzon name and invested significant funds to restore the vineyard to its former glory and adapt it to the requirements of modern times.

Currently, the vineyard operates actively, producing wine from its vineyards, drawing from the experiences of previous generations. Thanks to the hard work, Bodegas Luzon has become the leading producer and seller of premium wines in the province of Jumilla. The vineyard spans over 600 hectares of vineyards, mainly located on limestone terrain, where excellent weather conditions prevail for the development of the local Monastrell grape variety.

Bodegas Luzon Winery in Jumilla Tour

As you might have guessed, the Bodegas Luzon winery in Jumilla, in the Spanish Region of Murcia, can be visited. To do so, one must contact the vineyard’s owners and arrange a date for the visit, as the number of visitors is limited to small groups. Moreover, English-speaking guides are scarce. When we visited Bodegas Luzon, there was only one guide available who spoke English.

As I learned during a conversation with the company’s employees, the story of good wine doesn’t begin in the presses or barrels but in the vineyard, where the fruits ripen on the vines. The quality of the final wine depends on the amount of work invested in caring for and cultivating the vines.

The Luzon vineyard boasts a modern fruit processing system, which can be observed during a walk through the facility’s accessible areas. The massive tanks and silos, where grapes fruits undergo a magical transformation into wine, leave a lasting impression. The intricate production process and the technology employed during its course differ significantly from the simple fermentation in a glass bottle in your grandfather’s cellar.

The tour begins where the fruits ripen, namely in the vineyard, then the guide leads visitors to the factory where machines for processing, fermenting, and clarifying the product stand. This product will eventually become excellent wine in the future.

The next stage of the journey through the world of wine is the cellar, where wooden barrels with the finished product are stored. There are thousands of them, meticulously divided by vintages. I particularly enjoyed walking among the stacked barrels, feeling a bit like in a medieval, monastery cellar with wine. After all, the ageing process is not much different from what it was hundreds or even thousands of years ago.

The next room on the tour is the sanctuary, the heart, and pride of every winery. It is a large space where bottled wine is ageing. Glass bottles lie in cabinets, neatly arranged in stacks, each representing a different vintage. The oldest wine I found was 22 years old, and there wasn’t much left of it; a bottle of this nectar costs a small fortune.

The last stage of the Bodegas Luzon winery tour is, of course, the tasting. On the table, there are snacks, cheeses, and cold cuts that help bring out additional flavour profiles from the wine. Four types of wines are presented, and the guide explains which ones pair best with the appropriate snack. I remember that the first wine served was white and paired perfectly with mature cheese; the rest blended on my rather simple, accustomed-to-whisky palate, leaving no trace in memory.

Finally, there’s a gift in the form of wine glasses, and you can visit the winery’s shop for souvenirs.

Personally, I believe that the visit to Bodegas Luzon was a great adventure that allowed me to understand how challenging and labor-intensive the process of producing good, aromatic wine is.

Bodegas Luzon winery in Jumilla practical information

The address of the Bodegas Luzon vineyard is: Ctra Jumilla-Calasparra Km 3.1, 30520 Jumilla – Murcia – Spain.

How far it is from Bodegas Luzon winery to:

• Torrevieja 125 kilometres.
• La Mata 130 kilometres.
• San Pedro del Pinatar 120 kilometres.
• Murcia 70 kilometres.
• Alicante 95 kilometres.
• Valencia 160 kilometres.

Visiting the Bodegas Luzon vineyard in Jumilla takes about an hour unless you choose the extended option, in which case you’ll spend over two hours at the vineyard. Bodegas Luzon can be visited every day from 11:00 to 17:00. Remember to contact the vineyard to arrange a tour with a guide who speaks a language other than Spanish.

The basic tour costs 11 euros. Besides the tour of the facility, you’ll have the opportunity to taste three different wines along with suitable snacks. The extended tour costs over 30 euros, but in this case, you’ll have the chance to taste various vintages and sample many premium wines in the winery’s restaurant.

To express your interest in visiting the vineyard, you should use the official website, where you’ll need to select a specific day and the exact time for your tour to begin.

I recommend checking the vineyard’s website regularly, as interesting events and workshops related to winemaking are occasionally organized there. One noteworthy event is the Open Grape Harvest, during which you can participate in activities such as grape juice painting instead of using ink.

An additional pleasure is the opportunity to learn about the history of the region in Spain, centuries intertwined with winemaking, and the art of winemaking itself. We thoroughly enjoyed our expedition, and I am confident that you will derive a lot of pleasure from your visit to Bodegas Luzon in Jumilla.

Bodegas Luzon Winery in Jumilla facts, information and interesting facts

• The name of the Bodegas Luzon vineyard originates from the largest island in the Philippine archipelago, where the capital of the Philippines, Manila, is located.
• In 1863, Don Jose Molina, an officer in the Spanish army stationed in the Philippines, purchased part of the lands that make up the present-day vineyard.
• Until 1980, the vineyard and the entire company were governed by the female members of the family.
• Currently, the vineyard is run in a very modern way, utilizing the latest technologies to ensure excellent quality in the wines it produces.
• The company is known for its great care and concern for the natural environment. Almost all by-products are either used by the vineyard or sold to other companies for consumption.
• Thanks to modern technology and innovative production techniques, the vineyard has managed to reduce water consumption by over 10 percent and minimize the amount of waste and packaging.
• Recently, the vineyard has introduced several lines of organic and ecological wines.
• In 1918, Bodegas Luzon in Jumilla received the Wineries for Climate Protection (WfCP) certificate for its exceptional achievements and environmental care. Only a few wineries in Spain possess such documentation.
• The wines produced at Bodegas Luzon encompass a wide range of various alcoholic beverages, from elegant and sophisticated brands to light and aromatic dessert wines.
• The Jumilla region is considered the warmest in all of Spain, with annual rainfall not exceeding 300 millilitres per square meter.
• The high-temperature and dry climate pose significant challenges during the journey the fruits must make from the vines to the factory. Special techniques involve hand-picking grapes and transporting them to the winery in small crates to keep the clusters intact and fresh.
• The vineyard uses noble and truly royal grape varieties known as Mourvèdre or Monastrell. Combined with the local climate, wines produced from these grapes acquire aromas of dried, lightly smoked, and chocolate flavours.
• Wines from the Luzon vineyard can be found on the shelves of many stores in Europe.
• Jumilla is just 125 kilometres away from Torrevieja and La Mata.

Polish version