The Grape
ALL BOCOPA’S WINES ARE A TOTAL EXPRESSION OF OUR HISTORY AND LAND.
Alicante is privileged to have two grape-producing areas with very different characteristics. Both areas benefit from an average 2,800 hours of sunshine every year, which has a direct impact on evaporation, but that is where the similarity ends. Otherwise, they are completely different areas.
Elaboration from the sixth century before Christ.
Grapes and wine making have been part of the history of Alicante province since 600 BC. Archaeological remains from the Iberian period found in Benimaquia are proof of this. All the civilisations to make their home on this land have appreciated Alicante’s superb conditions as a quality wine production area. The raw materials used by Bocopa to create its wine are all from Alicante’s vineyards. There is no other spot on the plant with quite the same light, temperatures, humidity and soil qualities as those that nourish the vines that grow here.
Alicante’s wine makers nourish their 2,500 hectares of vineyards every day so that when autumn comes they can harvest the fruits of this thousand-year-old task. The work of these farmers, their permanent contact with the vines, is what gives our wines their quality. Nature has an influence and makes a difference, but excellence is down to the work done by man.
Vineyards near the sea benefited by the Mediterranean breeze
The steep terrain in these climes means that the vines are grown on terraces. This is where Muscat of Alexandria grapes, a quick-ripening variety, are grown. Bocopa uses these grapes to produce its famous Marina Alta, the sweet Muscatel Sol de Alicante and our Marina Espumante.
The vineyards of Vinalopó and la Foia de Castalla are hundreds of metres above sea level and have dry climate with little rain. This is a red grape production area. The queen of these varieties is the archetype of the Designation of Origin, Denominación de Origen Alicante, the Monastrell. However, foreign varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Petit Verdot and white Chardonnay are extraordinarily well suited to this area. These are generally limestone and poor soils. This allows making red and rosé wines with a dense taste and a long persistence. This is where we produce our Ermita de Petrer red, Terreta Rosé and the Marina Espumante Rosado. The loving care which farmers tend their vineyards enables us to produce organic wine. Our Laudum Nature red is a great example of this.
