Bullas - Murcia Province

Town by the Rio Segura, inland Murcia

Bullas (Rackets) is 53 kilometres from the city of Murcia.
CENTRAL PLAZA

In the hot plain of the Cagitán, on a knoll where in ancient times there was a fortified castle. Today this castle is just a memory and history speaks us of the border, which was a dangerous place the locals went to take refuge when they were attacked. From here can be seen the terraces of cultivated land and forest zones that make up the territory.

Take a walk in the old streets, where ancient large houses with shields are conserved with the original fascias. Some of these houses retain beautiful doors and the original balconies.

Situated in the sunny highlands the municipality of Bullas is an age-old viniculture region, as shown by the statue of the god Bacchus found during excavation of a nearby Roman site. Visitors will marvel at the rich verdure of its vineyards, a highly prestigious winegrowing area that yields such distinctive wines as Carrascalejo: robust reds and brandies and especially the fruity rosés, combining all the savour of the countryside and its flora, which are bottled in the neoclassical palace of the same name. Apart from the wealth of monuments in the town, with such obvious examples as the Church of Santa María del Rosario, the former Melgares palace or the remains of a mediaeval watchtower by the Segura River, the potential, hidden wealth is to be discovered in the outlying districts: numerous archaeological sites (particularly from the Argar culture) and delightful landscapes invite visitors to explore this sprawling countryside of contrasting colours.

Street market                                                                       

In Bullas we can find the origins of wine growing date back not only centuries but millenniums. There is evidence that vines have existed in this area from as early as 3000 BC even if they only began to be actually cultivated in 800 BC. From that moment up until the late 19th century when phylloxera devastated the vines in the area, wine-making has always played a fundamental role in the local community and the various powers that have passed through this area, from the Phoenicians to the Romans, to the knightly orders of the middle ages have all benefited from and added to this wealth of experience. Now the willingness to share these secrets and the innovatory spirit of local cooperatives and wineries have succeeded in combining modern industrial methods and time-eternal traditions, and this is the key to the superb quality of the wines that bear the Bullas D.O.C. label.

Situation
The area protected by the "Bullas" Denominacion de Origen is situated in the Northwest of the Murcia region and includes the towns of Bullas, Cehegín, Mula and Ricote. Compared to other wine growing areas the vines in Bullas grow at an extremely high altitude and most of the vineyards are situated at over 600 metres above sea level. As a result this area has a totally unique Mediterranean climate (the average temperature is 15.6º C), where the winters are cold but short and the summers are long and hot, and even if the yearly rainfall is low (450 mm) it is still higher than the surrounding areas.

Wines
In Bullas the Monastrell grape is by far the most popular amongst wine growers (80% of total cultivation) as traditionally this has always been a red wine area and this type of vine grows well in balanced conditions. Nevertheless a number of excellent whites and clarets have always been made here and grapes such as the Tempranillo, (for reds and clarets) and Macabeo and Airén, (for whites) occupy an important place in wine-making traditions. Recently a number of new varieties have been introduced to the area and despite the fact that the zone is recognized at an official level as a Monastrell region, wines such as Cabernet-Sauvignon, Syrah, Merlot and Garnacha (Grenache) are rapidly making ground.

Local attractions
From the maze of streets in the old town of Bullas, to the picturesque vineyards that line the Mula valley, this area lives and breathes its ancient wine-making traditions.

The town and countryside are full of old cellars and even the ancient remains, such as the Roman sculpture of Bacchus in the Villa de los Cantos seem to whisper the word "wine". To help the visitor discover the unique and dramatic character of the countryside a number of facilities have been introduced such as camping sites, parks and the charming "casas rurales", beautiful old buildings, often in historical settings, that have been refurbished for use as holiday homes. Recently these initiatives have been extended to include a wine museum, a carefully signposted wine route and a number of the splendid old cellars have been opened to the public, including the offices of the D.O.C. authorities, situated in the town centre of Bullas.

All these innovations show just how proud the local people are to welcome visitors into their time-honoured world of viniculture and to share the secrets of a wine.