The winery is located in the municipality of Malpica de Tajo, 50 kilometres from Toledo in the Spanish region of La Mancha. The estate "Finca Casadevacas" has been in the family since 1292. The total estate covers 1,400 hectares. Carlos Falcó y Fernández de Córdova (1937-2020) is considered one of the most important Spanish winegrowing pioneers. He was the 5th Marqués de Griñón, the name of this Spanish noble title referring to the town of Griñón in the province of Madrid. He studied at the French Lyceum in Madrid and later studied agricultural engineering at the University of Louvain (Brussels) and agricultural economics at the University of California at Davis. Since the wines were given the highest rating by wine critic Robert Parker in 1995, the Marqués was considered a living legend. After his death, he was succeeded by his second daughter Tamara Falcó.
Transformation into a winery
The Marqués began to cultivate vines in 1974 together with winemaker Julio López Mourelle in the extremely dry area using the most modern methods. The vineyards cover 52 hectares on clay and limestone soils at 490 metres above sea level and are divided into three separate plots. The French varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Petit Verdot and Syrah, which were not yet permitted at the time, were planted. The vineyards were one of the first in Europe at the time to use artificial drip irrigation. This uses electronic sensors to check soil moisture. The Australian viticulture expert Dr. Richard Smart (*1945) introduced the canopy management system he had developed. The two famous oenologists Michel Rolland (*1947) and Émile Peynaud (1912-2004) acted in an advisory capacity. The modern, partially underground, air-conditioned wine cellar was built in 1989 in an 18th century building.
Dominio de Valdepusa
The winery was granted a special regulation in the 1970s. The wines were allowed to bear the designation "Vino de Mesa de Toledo" with vintage indication, although there is no DO area called Toledo. In 2003, the sub-area (site) "Dominio de Valdepusa" was classified as the first, newly introduced Vino de Pago area, the highest Spanish wine quality level above DOCa. The wines are aged in around 1,000 French oak barrels in the air-conditioned barrique cellar. The top product is the red wine cuvée "Eméritus", which has become a cult wine. The grapes are carefully hand-picked and strictly selected. The wine is blended from Cabernet Sauvignon (over 80%), Petit Verdot and Syrah, fermented in stainless steel tanks and aged for 24 months in barriques.
Other activities
Olive growing is also practised and olive oil is marketed. The wine activities were extended to other Spanish DO areas from the end of the 1980s. These are Vinos de Madrid with the red wine "El Rincón", Rueda (Castile-León), Rioja in a joint venture with the two wineries Berberana and Lagunilla and Ribera del Duero (Castile-León) under the name Bodegas Durius. Ownership also includes the Marqués de Griñón winery in Argentina's Mendoza region.
Carlos Falcó: CC BY 3.0, Link
