Celler Malondro was set up in 2000 – a father´s dream to follow in the footsteps of his grandfather. His sons have kept the dream alive and it has inspired the 3rd generation to take on the dream as their own.
Each bottle of our wine is the result of the best product of the land, the wisdom of several generations of family tradition and training in the implementation of the industry’s latest technology. Vines are treated ecologically, following the practices our grandparents used, including vegetation covering to encourage the balance between the plant and the earth whilst respecting the local fauna and flora.
Our viticulturalist comes from a long line of viticulturalists, with passion and dedication. He knows how to get the best from each vine and variety and it was his grandfather who reintroduced the native Garnacha Gris (Garnacha Roje as it is known locally and which literally translates as Pink Garnacha) to our vineyards.
Our challenge is to provide excellent wines, with the evident variations of each vintage, whilst maintaining its own style and personality, and ensuring a meticulous process of production and ageing to produce exceptional, distinguished, terroir-specific wines. Our enologist knows he has excellent grapes to work with, checking regularly and consulting with the barrel makers each year to ensure the best style and toasting of the barrel to allow each wine to reach its full expression.
All our vines are in the North East sub region of Cornudella de Montsant – in the foothills of the Montsant mountain range that lends its name to the wine region. Not surprisingly the vineyards are at high altitudes (between 450m and 700m) – well above the average 360m above sea level in D.O. Montsant wine region. As a result, we are one of the last wineries to harvest our grapes. The combination of altitude and great diurnal temperature differences results in a cool, long ripening period with late harvesting from early October even through to November in some years. Here the climate is a combination of Continental with dry cold winters and hot summers and low rainfall mainly in the Spring and Autumn averaging 460mm per year and Mediterranean. Overall, the perfect combination to maintain more acidity whilst allowing the grapes to develop more complex aromas.
The soil in each of our vineyards varies. Each is composed of a unique combination of chalk, flint and slate complimented by round pebbles that gives each of our wines their characteristic minerality and distinctiveness that reflects their terroir. All our soils are nutrient-poor and in high water drainage areas that place additional stress on the vines thus producing the best quality grapes.
Our wines are predominantly made from four varieties. Garnacha and Carignan are our mainstay grapes since they thrive in hot, dry, nutrient-poor soil conditions. They offer structure, deep colour, fruit and herbal aromas to our wines. The high altitude provides the balance between acidity and alcohol levels. Macabeo gives the structure and aromas to our white wine that can be drunk young or kept to allow the flavours infused during the oaking process to come to the fore. Garnacha Gris, native to the area, adds unique aromas and a pleasant aftertaste.
