The Modest Local, the Mountain & the Grape That Belongs to the Family
In Planes, in the heart of El Comtat, Hilari Calabuig tends five hectares of family vines on steep calcareous-clay slopes between 500 and 800 metres — where the mountain air meets the Mediterranean, and where a modest local winemaking project for self-consumption became one of inland Alicante's most honest natural wine estates.
Origin — The Modest Local, the Family Land & the Noble Intention
Cup de la Muntanya began, like many of Spain's most honest wine projects, not as a commercial venture but as a family necessity. More than fifteen years ago, in the village of Planes, in the heart of the El Comtat comarca in inland northern Alicante, Hilari Calabuig and his family started making wine in a modest local — a small space with a noble intention: to create wines of quality for their own consumption. The family land around the village had always been agricultural — vines, fruit trees, olive trees — and wine was simply part of the household, like bread or oil.
But what began as a modest adventure quickly became something more passionate. The wines were good — better than good. They were honest. And honesty, in a region where industrial bulk production has long dominated, is a radical quality. The project evolved from self-consumption to artisanal production, and the winery grew into a five-hectare vineyard and cellar that today produces some of the most authentic natural wines in the Valencian Community. The transition was not driven by market analysis. It was driven by the simple fact that the land, the climate, and the family knowledge had already decided what the wine should be.
The name Cup de la Muntanya — Top of the Mountain — is not poetic exaggeration. The vineyards sit on the upper slopes of the inland mountain ranges of northern Alicante, where the comarcas of El Comtat and La Marina Alta meet. This is a landscape of sharp relief, of small plots (minifundios) clinging to hillsides, of calcareous soils and sudden drops. The winery's address is Carrer del Vi, 8 — Wine Street, number 8 — a detail so perfect it seems invented, but which speaks to the centrality of wine in the village's identity. Planes is not a wine town by tourism standards. It is a wine town by survival standards.
Today, the estate is led by Hilari Calabuig as director and CEO, with Xavi Mas handling commercial direction, and a team that includes collaborators like Paco Figuerola and Luis Catalá. The oenological approach has been shaped by a French oenologist — a detail that matters, because it explains the precision and clarity of the wines. This is not rustic natural wine made by instinct alone. It is natural wine made by instinct guided by technique, by family knowledge sharpened by formal training. The result is a portfolio that is both approachable and serious — wines that sell for around ten euros but taste like they cost twice as much.
The Place — The Calcareous Clay, the Steep Slopes & the Two Comarcas
Planes sits in the El Comtat comarca, in the mountainous interior of northern Alicante — a region of continental-Mediterranean climate where the summers are hot and dry, the winters are cold, and the rainfall is low. The estate's vineyards are scattered across small mountain plots — minifundios — at altitudes between 500 and 800 metres above sea level, on calcareous and clay soils that retain water, reflect heat, and impart a distinct mineral depth to the wines. But Cup de la Muntanya's reach extends beyond El Comtat. Through collaborations and partnerships, the project also works with vineyards in La Marina Alta, giving the wines a dual identity: mountain and sea.
El Comtat — The Mountain Vineyards
The heart of the estate lies in the steep, stony slopes around Planes — a landscape where mechanization is impossible and every vine must be tended by hand. The soils are calcareous-clay — rich in calcium carbonate, poor in organic matter, and capable of producing wines of extraordinary structure and freshness when farmed with patience. The altitude — 500 to 800 metres — gives the vines the cool nights they need to retain acidity in a hot climate. The family land includes Grenache, Cabernet, and Viognier, but also fruit trees and olive trees — a polycultural landscape that has defined Mediterranean mountain farming for centuries. The plots are small, the slopes are strong, and the work is entirely artisanal.
La Marina Alta — The Sea Influence
Through its collaboration with Finca Mont Roig in Pedreguer (La Marina Alta), Cup de la Muntanya extends its reach to the Mediterranean coast — a terroir of lower altitude, different soils, and direct maritime influence. Here, the project works with Chardonnay and Moscatel, producing wines like Marofe and Rosers that capture the coastal brightness and saline freshness of the nearby sea. This duality — mountain structure and sea brightness — is rare in a single winery, and it gives Cup de la Muntanya a range that spans the full geographic and climatic spectrum of Alicante's interior and coast.
Viognier — The White Jewel of the Mountain
Viognier is not a native Valencian grape. It is a Rhône variety of extraordinary aromatic intensity — apricot, peach, white flowers, and honey — that has found an unexpected home in the calcareous-clay soils of El Comtat. At Cup de la Muntanya, Viognier is the signature white variety, producing the estate's most celebrated wine: Albakar. The grape benefits from the altitude's cool nights, which preserve its acidity, and the calcareous soils, which give it a mineral backbone that prevents the tropical lushness from becoming cloying. It is a grape that demands attention and rewards the mountain's austerity.
Cabernet Franc, Alicante Bouschet & the Reds of the Slope
While Viognier dominates the whites, the reds are built on Cabernet Franc and Alicante Bouschet (Tintorera) — varieties that thrive on the steep, sun-drenched slopes of the mountain. Cabernet Franc brings herbaceous freshness, red-fruit precision, and a bell-pepper savouriness that is rare in Mediterranean reds. Alicante Bouschet — a teinturier grape with red flesh and extraordinary colour — provides depth, structure, and the inky intensity that the mountain sun demands. Together, they produce wines of unexpected elegance and power — reds that speak of altitude rather than heat, of stone rather than sand.
Winemaking — Minimal Intervention, the French Hand & the Single Digression
Cup de la Muntanya's cellar philosophy is clear and uncompromising: natural wines, minimal intervention, and the minimization of sulphites. The project allows the richness of the grape to evolve with freedom, refusing the standardizing pressures of industrial winemaking. The vineyards are worked with sustainable and biodynamic techniques — not certified, perhaps, but practiced with the seriousness of belief. The harvest is entirely manual. The respect for nature is absolute. And the result is wines that taste of place rather than process.
The oenologist is French — a detail that shapes the wines in ways both subtle and profound. The French influence is visible in the precision of the whites, the clarity of the fruit, and the balance between aromatic intensity and structural freshness. But this is not French wine made in Spain. It is Spanish wine made with French discipline — the rigor of technique applied to the generosity of the Mediterranean grape. The winemaker produces still whites and reds, and the only deviation from strict natural practice is the use of Bentonite — a natural clay that clarifies and stabilizes white wine. This is not a chemical. It is clay. And it is the single concession the winery allows itself.
The Albakar — the estate's flagship Viognier — is made without added sulphites. The grapes are hand-harvested, gently pressed, and fermented with indigenous yeasts. The wine is aged on its fine lees, developing a texture of old gold and an aromatic profile that evolves from fresh mango and tropical fruit to spicy, floral complexity. Because it contains no sulphites, the wine continues to develop in the bottle — a living wine that shifts and deepens with time. It is bottled when ready, not when the market demands, and it is offered at a price — around ten euros — that makes natural wine accessible rather than exclusive.
The reds follow the same principles. Indigenous fermentation. Minimal extraction. Low or no sulphites. No fining, no filtration where possible. The Solana del Duc — a blend of Cabernet Franc and Alicante Bouschet — receives 24 months of ageing in barrel, a length of time that would be unthinkable for most natural wines at this price point. But Cup de la Muntanya does not rush. The mountain teaches patience. The French hand teaches precision. And the family teaches that wine is not a product but a relationship between people, land, and time.
The Wines — From the Mountain Viognier to the Coastal Chardonnay
Cup de la Muntanya produces a focused range of natural wines from its own mountain vineyards and its coastal collaborations — all made with indigenous yeasts, sustainable or biodynamic farming, and minimal sulphite use. The range spans white, rosé, and red, with each wine expressing a specific parcel, variety, or alliance. Production is tiny. Prices are honest. And character is abundant.
Cup de la Muntanya "Albakar"
White — Planes, El ComtatThe estate's signature and most celebrated wine — 100% Viognier from the Albacar parcel in Planes, on calcareous-clay soils at 500–800 metres altitude. A single-varietal white made without added sulphites, of an old gold colour, intensely aromatic. The nose dominates with fruit and floral aromas — mango, pear, apricot, and white flowers — with evolution toward spicy complexity. The palate is dry, medium-bodied, with soft acidity and a lingering aromatic finish from skin contact. A wine of extraordinary value — around ten euros — that proves natural wine need not be expensive to be profound. ~13% ABV. Zero added sulphites. Indigenous yeast.
Cup de la Muntanya "Marofe"
White — Pedreguer, La Marina AltaA natural white of elegant luminosity — 95% Chardonnay and 5% Moscatel from Finca Mont Roig in Pedreguer, on the coastal side of the project. Straw yellow with greenish reflections. The nose is of green apples and tropical fruit, fresh and precise. Fermented and aged in stainless steel to preserve clarity and brightness. The result is a wine that captures the coastal Mediterranean — saline, crisp, and sunlit — in contrast to the mountain depth of Albakar. A collaboration that demonstrates the winery's range and its respect for terroir beyond its own boundaries. ~13% ABV. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Rosers"
White — Pedreguer, La Marina AltaA Chardonnay aged in French oak barrels — the more structured, contemplative sibling of Marofe. From the same Finca Mont Roig collaboration, but given two months of barrel ageing that adds texture, spice, and a subtle vanilla-brioche complexity without overwhelming the fruit. The oak is French, not American — elegance rather than sweetness. The result is a natural Chardonnay of unexpected sophistication — a wine that can stand alongside white Burgundies at twice the price, while remaining unmistakably Mediterranean in its saline undertow and sun-warmed fruit. ~13% ABV. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Bisserot"
White — Pedreguer / PlanesA coastal-mountain blend — 80% Chardonnay, 10% Moscatel de Alejandría, and 10% Viognier — that unites the two terroirs of the project in a single bottle. The Chardonnay provides structure and apple freshness from Finca Mont Roig. The Moscatel contributes floral perfume and tropical generosity. And the Viognier adds the stone-fruit depth and mineral backbone of Planes. The result is a three-grape conversation between mountain and sea — complex, layered, and utterly distinctive. A wine that only Cup de la Muntanya could make, because only Cup de la Muntanya has access to both worlds. ~13% ABV. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Ibis Magnum"
Red — Planes, El ComtatA 100% Cabernet Franc from the mountain vineyards of Planes — a variety more commonly associated with the Loire Valley than with Alicante, but which thrives in the calcareous-clay soils and cool nights of El Comtat. The wine is fresh, herbaceous, and precise — red cherry, bell pepper, and wild mountain herbs — with a structure that speaks of altitude rather than heat. Fermented with indigenous yeasts, aged according to the vintage, and bottled with minimal sulphites. A wine that proves Cabernet Franc has a Mediterranean future when it is grown in the right place by the right hands. ~13.5–14% ABV. Natural. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Bona Gent"
Red — Planes, El ComtatA young natural red — 100% Cabernet Franc — made in a joven style for immediate pleasure. Lighter than the Ibis Magnum, fresher, and more approachable. The name Bona Gent — Good People — suggests the wine's intended context: shared among friends, poured without ceremony, enjoyed for what it is rather than analyzed for what it might become. Red fruit, herbal freshness, and a gentle tannic grip. A glou-glou with mountain integrity — the kind of wine that disappears quickly and leaves everyone smiling. ~13% ABV. Natural. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Solana del Duc"
Red Crianza — Planes, El ComtatThe estate's most structured and ambitious red — a blend of Cabernet Franc and Alicante Bouschet from the Solana del Duc parcel, given 24 months of ageing in barrel. Intense ruby colour with violet reflections. The nose is fresh and complex — ripe red fruits, blackcurrant, and a subtle earthy spice. The palate is dense but not heavy, with the mountain acidity cutting through the Bouschet's natural depth. This is a wine that defies the cliché of natural wine as merely rustic — it is polished, serious, and capable of long ageing, yet it remains honest and unadorned. A crianza made without artifice. ~14% ABV. 24 months barrel. Natural. Low sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Diània Negre"
Red — Planes, El ComtatA natural red of variable composition — Alicante Bouschet or Garnacha, depending on the vintage and the parcel. The name Diània refers to the ancient Iberian name for the region around Dénia and the northern Marina Alta — a nod to the deep history of viticulture in these mountains. The wine is dark, juicy, and herbaceous — black fruit, wild thyme, and a stony minerality that speaks of the calcareous soils. Fermented naturally, aged according to the year, and bottled with minimal intervention. A wine that changes with the vintage because the mountain changes with the year. ~14% ABV. Natural. Minimal sulphites.
Cup de la Muntanya "Mas de la Foia"
Red — Planes, El ComtatFrom the Mas de la Foia parcel — a specific vineyard site that gives its name to this cuvée. The composition varies with the vintage, drawing on the estate's mountain reds — likely Cabernet Franc, Alicante Bouschet, and Garnacha in varying proportions. The wine expresses the particular character of this single plot: its exposure, its stoniness, its altitude. A wine for those who understand that place matters more than recipe — and that a name on a label can be a map as well as a brand. Natural. Minimal sulphites. Limited production.
Cup de la Muntanya Collaborations / Custom Winemaking
Variable — AlicanteBeyond its own labels, Cup de la Muntanya operates as a collaborative cellar for like-minded projects across Alicante. The winery produces wines for Finca Mont Roig (Marofe, Rosers, Bisserot, Tossal Roig), Shukhrat Khakimov & Viticultores (Sant Joan d'Alacant), and Redéu Vi Divi (Beniarrés). This is not contract winemaking in the industrial sense. It is shared philosophy — natural, indigenous yeast, minimal sulphites — applied to different terroirs and different visions. The common thread is Hilari Calabuig's cellar and his conviction that honest wine should be available to all who seek it, not only to those who own the vines.
Legacy — The Modest Local, the French Hand & the Mountain That Remembers
Cup de la Muntanya matters because it is one of the most honest and accessible natural wine projects in inland Alicante — the work of a family that, more than fifteen years ago, decided to make wine for themselves and discovered that the world wanted what they had. In a region where the coastal boom has overshadowed the agricultural interior, Hilari Calabuig has proven that mountain vineyards, French technique, and natural philosophy can produce wines of extraordinary purity and value — wines that sell for ten euros but taste like they cost thirty.
His legacy is agricultural. By farming five hectares of family vines on steep calcareous-clay slopes at 500–800 metres, by maintaining polycultural land with vines, fruit trees, and olive trees, by working in minifundios where mechanization is impossible and every vine is touched by human hands, Calabuig has preserved a model of Mediterranean mountain farming that is threatened by abandonment and development. The plots of Albacar, Solana del Duc, and Mas de la Foia are not merely vineyard names. They are family places.
His legacy is also oenological. The Albakar — 100% Viognier, no added sulphites, old gold, mango and spice — is a wine that almost no one else in El Comtat makes, because almost no one else grows Viognier at this altitude with this care. The Solana del Duc — 24 months in barrel, Cabernet Franc and Alicante Bouschet, natural — proves that crianza-level ambition is compatible with natural wine integrity. And the Marofe, Rosers, and Bisserot — the coastal collaboration with Finca Mont Roig — demonstrate that a small mountain winery can also speak for the sea.
And his legacy is philosophical. "Elaboramos vinos naturales, con nula intervención, y a través de técnicas de cultivo sostenibles y biodinámicas." This is not a marketing slogan. It is a daily practice — visible in the manual harvest, the indigenous yeasts, the minimal sulphites, the Bentonite as the single digression, and the prices that keep natural wine within reach of ordinary drinkers. The French oenologist brings technique. The family brings history. And the mountain brings the truth that no consultant can manufacture.
From the modest local on Carrer del Vi to the steep slopes of Albacar, from the self-consumption of fifteen years ago to the natural wine bars of Europe today, Cup de la Muntanya is a testament to what happens when a family decides that the best wine is the one you make for yourself — and then has the generosity to share it. The mountain is high. The sulphites are low. And the drinker is welcomed.