Bodegas Perfer

Bodegas Perfer – a benchmark in Almería’s winemaking industry.

High-quality wine begins with high-quality grapes, which is why viticulture plays such a vital role at this esteemed estate. Bodegas Perfer cultivates 42 hectares of authorized grape varieties, including Tempranillo, Merlot, Garnacha, and Cabernet Sauvignon. The vines are planted in a 2.25 x 1.50-meter grid and trained on a double cordon trellis system, maintaining an average yield of 2.5 kg per vine.

To achieve optimal fruit quality, a cluster thinning is performed near the onset of veraison, ensuring that only the best bunches remain evenly distributed across the vine. At the same time, shoots are trimmed to direct the sap's energy into ripening the fruit rather than promoting vegetative growth. Skipping this step can disrupt the plant's vegetative cycle, increasing vigor the following year or causing berry enlargement, which may dilute color intensity.

Leaf cover is carefully managed to ensure enough foliage remains around the clusters to protect them from the intense midday heat typical of this climate. Due to the area's low rainfall, drip irrigation is used and precisely regulated to avoid excess water and promote even ripening.

From veraison onwards (which varies by variety), ripening is monitored weekly and, as harvest approaches, more frequently. Thanks to the region's altitude and unique climatic conditions, bud break occurs nearly a month earlier than in other wine regions. Harvesting takes place in September.

Harvesting is done manually, selecting only the healthiest and best-ripened bunches. These are transported in 10 kg crates to the winery, where another manual selection ensures only the top fruit proceeds to the next stage.

This detailed vineyard management provides Bodegas Perfer with exceptional raw material. Each grape variety is fermented separately in temperature-controlled stainless steel tanks at around 28°C, followed by approximately 25 days of skin maceration. After this, malolactic fermentation is carried out to soften the wine’s character.

Wines destined for aging are transferred directly into French and American oak barrels. After maturation, selected batches are blended to create the final cuvées before bottling. The result is a portfolio of expressive wines that reflect both the character of the land and the meticulous care taken from vineyard to bottle.

In the world of wine, there are many different variations that differ in flavor, body, and even type. These differences depend on both the grape variety used and the way the wine is produced, aged, and bottled.

One of the most surprising and eye-catching wine variants is blue wine, named after its distinctive color — yes, it's actually blue! This sets it apart from red wine, with its reddish-purple hue, white wine with its clear golden tones, and rosé with its delicate pink shade.

Blue wine gets its unique color thanks to a group of flavonoids known as anthocyanins — natural antioxidants found in grapes and wine. These anthocyanins can be added either naturally or artificially to give the wine its vibrant blue tint.

Much like what happens during the transformation of grape juice into must and eventually wine, anthocyanins react during fermentation and aging to create this striking color. Achieving the perfect balance between colored and white anthocyanins — which are present in both white and red grapes, as well as in fruits like blueberries — is key to the result.

The exact method for creating blue wine depends on the producer. Some use added anthocyanins during fermentation, while others achieve the blue color more naturally through blending specific grape varieties.

As for its alcohol content, blue wine is quite similar to white and rosé wines, generally ranging from 8% to 12% alcohol by volume. This makes it a relatively light and easy-to-drink wine, especially when served chilled, which softens the perception of alcohol even further.