Arrayán represents a thrilling combination of landscapes to the North of Toledo and the mountains of the Central System. Lands with a very longstanding winemaking tradition, vineyards cared for by the vine growers from the constellation of villages located between the plains of Castile and the granitic mountains of Gredos.
The River Alberche runs like a spinal column throughout the territory, both close and a long way from everything. On the southern border, the Finca La Verdosa estate, our origin and our heart, with a large vineyard in the centre of a native holm oak forest.
On the northern slopes of the broad valley, the villages of Almorox and el Real de San Vicente provide marvellous old vine fruit. And beyond, the first buttresses of the Sierra mark the gateway to the territories of Garnacha and Albillo, rooted in enigmatic granite.
La Verdosa
The world of the dehesa
Our original landscape: Arrayán’s origins, the wild dehesa in all its Mediterranean nature, sparse and aromatic. Rosemary, rockrose, thyme and lavender, alongside hundred-year old holm oaks. These are the families of plants that surround and protect the vineyards of Finca La Verdosa, our viticultural essence.
The parcels stretch across the gently undulating terrain. Straight lines over curved forms, an image of order and balance that contrasts with the zigzagging patches that open up amongst the native fauna of the area.
These surroundings offer an optimal base for developing our knowledge of the environment, the vines and wines, while we look out at the great granite wall of the mountain range in the distance. It is in this direction that we headed to discover the other worlds that complete Arrayán’s vision.
LA VERDOSA
Altitude:
470-510 m.
Climate:
Mediterranean with continental influence. Very hot summers and harsh winters. The risk of frost during the growing season is minimal.
Soils:
DAlluvial soils with a sandy texture. Acidic PH and a high silica content.
Vineyard area:
26 hectares.
Planting system:
Double trained vines, laid out in a 2.8 x 1.6 metre framework.
Type of cultivation:
Organic, worked by hand; the use of manure as fertilizer.
Year of planting of the vineyard
1999.
Grape varieties:
Syrah
Merlot
Cabernet Sauvignon
Petit Verdot
Graciano
Garnacha Peluda
Moravia
Bruñal
Albillo Real
Garnacha Blanca
Garnacha Gris
Mizancho
The Alberche villages
A longstanding tradition of old vines
On the Northern border of the Alberche river, in the direction of the mountain ranges of the Central System, the fields retain the traditional mosaic of crops: olive, fig and other fruit trees, wild pasture and numerous parcels of traditional vineyards.
A handful of villages are scattered amongst the brown, granitic lands. Arrayán harvests grapes in two of them: Albillo Real en Almorox, just opposite to Finca de La Verdosa; and Garnacha in El Real de San Vicente, towards the west, in the foothills of the Sierra de Gredos and with part of the vineyard already in the River Tiétar basin.
ALMOROX
Altitude:
600 m.
Climate:
Mediterranean with continental influence. Very hot summers and harsh winters.
Soils:
Stony, alluvial soils; granitic bedrock.
Vineyard area:
3 hectares.
Planting system:
Bush-trained vines, in different planting patterns.
Type of cultivation:
Worked by hand, with minimal intervention.
Vineyard age:
75-80 years old.
Varieties:
Albillo real
EL REAL DE SAN VICENTE
Altitude:
750 m.
Climate:
Mediterranean with continental influence. The altitude accentuates the thermal range between day and night, especially towards the end of the grape ripening cycle.
Soils:
Sandy-textured, stony soil over granite rocks.
Vineyard area:
5 hectares.
Planting system:
Bush-trained vines, in different planting patterns.
Type of cultivation:
Worked by hand, with minimal intervention, the land is tilled.
Vineyard age:
75 years old.
Varieties:
Garnacha
Slopes of the Sierra
Granite, slate and old vines
Our search for typical character and the definition found in high-altitude vines bought us to these slopes at the heart of the Cebreros Mountains. The fact that they are south-facing, combined with the altitude, decomposed granite and slate soils, together with the use of traditional viticulture, means that small old parcels of Garnacha and Albillo Real have been preserved here.
The resulting wines from the most easterly viticultural landscapes of the Sierra de Gredos are fluid, lean and expressive in their presentation. A distinctive sensation of fruit born of the rugged, high surroundings, from the mountain passes that mark the limit of vine cultivation. Another face of Arrayán found at high altitude.
SLATE
Altitude:
980 m.
Climate:
Mediterranean with continental influences, with high mountain features. The extreme altitude causes a very marked thermal range between day and night during the grape ripening period.
Soils:
The siliceous geology emerges in outcrops of slate-based schist..
Vineyard area:
1,5 hectares.
Planting system:
Vineyards on terraces with 32% slopes. Bush vines.
Cultivation type
Worked by hand, in difficult conditions due to the complex orography.
Vineyard age:
75 years old.
Varieties:
Garnacha
GRANITE
Altitude:
750 m.
Climate:
Mediterranean with continental influence, with the typical character of high altitude. The extreme altitude causes a very marked thermal range between day and night during the grape ripening period.
Soils:
Sandy-textured, stony soil over granite rocks.
Vineyard area:
3 hectares.
Planting system:
Bush vines.
Type of cultivation:
Manual.
Vineyard Age:
75-80 years old.
Varieties:
Albillo Real
