Local entrepreneur Fernando Maíllo launched this project in 2002 in partnership with two American investors. Maíllo was born in Sequeros (Salamanca) in a house that was lovingly restored by the family and is now a cosy hotel with only four rooms which are part of Cámbrico’s tourist offer and can be booked in their website.
Cámbrico was named after the geological period in which the Sierra de Salamanca mountains emerged. Maíllo started exploring the potential of local grapes (Rufete, Tempranillo and Garnacha, which is locally called Calabrés). The winery, built in 2006 in the village of Villanueva del Conde, combines design, usability and a great location with fabulous views of the surrounding hills and villages.
They own 6.5 ha under vine but grow up to 11 ha, mainly from local growers that are very close to the family. Most of their vineyards are found on granitic soils in Ladera del Pocito and other adjacent slopes.
This is a green, rugged region with rainfall levels above 1,000 mm a year where vineyards have been painstakingly recovered. Given the presence of wildlife and the area’s difficult access, some of their smaller, isolated plots are no longer grown. Organically farmed since the launch of the project, up to 80% of Cámbrico’s vines are over 50 years old and 50% are at least 80 years old with average yields of 4,000 kg/ha.
Varying amounts of stems are used depending on vintage variations, but never up to 100%. Fermentation takes place in stainless steel tanks except for the barrel fermented white and malolactic fermentation is done in barrels. Gravity-led, crane-operated tanks are used for vat filling, pumping or devatting. Ageing is done in 300-litre and 500-litre barrels. They fill around 30,000 bottles, of which over 70% are sold overseas.
The wine portfolio was reshaped in the 2016 vintage to add visibility to Rufete, the area’s signature red grape, and to the villages they source grapes from. Consequently, now there are two entry-level Viñas del Cámbrico Rufete sold for €15-€17 in Spain: Villanueva, named after the village of Villanueva del Conde, and Miranda, after Miranda del Castañar. In both cases, around 5,000 to 6,000 bottles are produced.
Next are two single-vineyard Rufete reds which do not exceed 1,000 bottles each and retail around €55 in Spain. Grapes for El Pocito are sourced from a very old plot in Villanueva del Conde on granite soils, while Valleoscuro tries to capture the distinctive character of a vineyard on slate soils in Garcibuey.
575 Uvas de Cámbrico (€20, 5,500 bottles) blends the three red grapes grown in the area: Tempranillo, Rufete and Garnacha or Calabrés.
The range also includes three varietal wines produced in very limited quantities: Cámbrico Tempranillo (€38, 500 bottles), Cámbrico Calabrés (Garnacha), just one or two barrels which are not produced every year and are released in magnum bottles at around €120, and the must-try white Rufetes.
Rufete Blanco is the latest ripening variety in the area, boasts great acidity and structure and can develop beautifully in bottle. After some experimental trials, 2014 was the first vintage in the market. The Rufete Blanco variety was recently approved by DOP Sierra de Salamanca and the first bottles with the appellation’s seal are due to appear in the 2020 2020 vintage. Again, there have been some changes because in the 2016 vintage, the original white was split into two different wines to feature different soils: Viñas del Cámbrico Pizarra and Viñas del Cámbrico Granito. Around 1,000 bottles of each wine are produced retailing at around €29.
Tours, which are highly recommended, must be arranged in advance. Groups are always small and do a tour of the vineyard, the winery and a tasting on Cámbrico’s delightful terrace.
