The Pedro Ximenez comes from vineyards in El Molar, where the soils are pebbly, clay-limestone rather than schist. Harvested by hand, the PX is layered whole cluster in a wine press and gently pressed by foot over a period of one hour; then, it is basket pressed, providing a combination of extraction, oxidation, and maceration. The Muscat, which comes from the village of Porrera, is fermented like red wine, with the grapes being layered whole-cluster in a fermentation vat and pressed down by foot. Once the vat is full, it is left undisturbed for a week, during which fermentation begins spontaneously. After a week, the Muscat is pressed and finishes fermentation in concrete tanks. These methods infuse the wine with the phenolic compounds of the skins without extracting the tannins. Cuques is a blend of Pedro Ximénez (90%) and Muscat d’Alexandria (10%).
