Bodegas F. Schatz
The German who replanted Ronda’s vines in 1982 — three hectares, no added sulphites, and two grapes grown nowhere else in Spain.
When Federico Schatz planted his first vines above Ronda in 1982, there was almost nothing to plant beside. A century earlier the Serranía had carried more than 13,000 hectares of vines; phylloxera wiped it out in 1878, and the vineyards never came back. He arrived at eighteen, from Germany, with a suitcase and a hunch.
A suitcase, a hunch and the Wagner line
The Schatz family came from the South Tyrol and settled in Korb, in Württemberg, with a winemaking tradition documented since 1641. Federico had two fixed ideas at eighteen: keep making wine, and do it somewhere warmer.
He travelled through Italy and France, then chose Spain — guided by the “Wagner line”, the climatic frontier between the Mediterranean and the Atlantic. In 1982 he landed in Ronda, planted three hectares on a south-facing plateau between the Sierra de Grazalema and the Sierra de las Nieves, named the estate Sanguijuela, and learned Spanish from the builders restoring the house.
"We were the pioneers here in Ronda — and the first certified organic winery in the whole province of Málaga."
- Federico Schatz
Ronda had been serious wine country once — the Roman city of Acinipo sat on the hill now called Ronda la Vieja — but by 1982 that history was a memory. Schatz wasn’t restoring it so much as starting again, alone, in a way almost no one else in Spain was working at the time.
The wines
Six wines, and a small private joke: their initials spell the family name — Schatz Chardonnay, C for the Pinot Noir, H for Acinipo, A for Finca Sanguijuela, T for the Petit Verdot, Z for the rosé.
The flagship Acinipo is a 100% Lemberger (Blaufränkisch) — Schatz is the only producer in the country working it — named for the Roman city above Ronda and, fittingly, for the chamomile biodynamic preparation. The rosé is 100% Muskattrollinger, a German black muscat he calls Moscatel Negro: smells sweet, drinks bone dry, and exists on no other Spanish label.
Wine with nothing added — that still ages
Almost every wine you drink contains added sulphites; producers aren’t required to list them, so most of us never know. Schatz adds none. The unusual part isn’t the purity — plenty of natural wines manage that — it’s that his bottles keep for years and stay fresh while they do it.
One of his German merchants puts it plainly: they don’t know of other no-added-sulphite wines that are at once this long-lived and this good. Schatz is more direct. A healthy grape, grown with nature instead of against it, makes a wine you can keep — “and there’s no healthier way to drink.”
Visiting the winery
Visits are by appointment only, in small closed groups of two to fifteen, in Spanish or English. There are no fixed public hours — you arrange a time directly with the bodega.
The tour walks the vineyard and the cellar before a tasting of four of the premium wines with a cold aperitif, and runs about ninety minutes. Most visits are led by Federico himself or the family now working alongside him — the same person who planted the place explaining how it works.
Bookings through Winedering start at €44 per person. There’s also a private Club Schatz, with members-only workshop-visits and first access to the limited bottlings.
Essentials
Visiting Finca Sanguijuela
| Activity | What's included | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Tour + tasting | Vineyard and cellar walk, tasting of 4 premium wines, cold aperitif · ~90 min | from €44 pp |
| Club Schatz | Members: free workshop-visits and early access to limited editions | Membership |
Getting there
Finca Sanguijuela is about 10 km from central Ronda. Take the Jerez–Sevilla road out of town for roughly 8 km, turn right onto the MA-7402 towards Ronda la Vieja, and after about 500 metres — on a bend — carry straight on along a dirt track for another 900 metres. The entrance is a black gate flanked by two palm trees, on your right.
It’s a winery you have to mean to find, which is rather the point. Bring the address; the last stretch is unsigned.
How they farm
Three hectares. Yields of about a kilo per vine. Everything Schatz does runs in the same direction: tiny quantities, maximum health, and as little intervention as the wine will allow.
The farming is certified organic — the first organic certification in the province of Málaga — and biodynamic in practice, built on Rudolf Steiner’s preparations 500 to 508. The herbs behind them — yarrow, chamomile, nettle, oak bark, dandelion, valerian — are the same ones drawn on the wine labels. Green manure from autumn-sown legumes, vine prunings composted in place, double-Guyot espalier, hand-harvest into 15-kilo crates.
In the cellar: native yeasts, fermentation in open tanks, ageing sur lie in French, American and Slovenian oak — and the bottles leave with no added sulphites at all.
"You can make good wine two ways. You go with the chemicals — or you go with nature, and you work with it, not against it. Then you need a healthy, good-quality grape. And with a healthy grape you make a beautiful natural wine."
- Federico Schatz
- +34 952 871 313
- bodega@f-schatz.com
- Finca Sanguijuela, Ronda, Málaga
FAQ
Can you visit Bodega F. Schatz?
Yes, by appointment only — there are no fixed opening hours. Visits are small closed groups of 2 to 15, in Spanish or English, and run about 90 minutes: a vineyard and cellar tour, a tasting of four premium wines and a cold aperitif. Bookings start at €44 per person and are usually led by Federico or the family.
Are F. Schatz wines natural and organic?
They’re certified organic (CAAE), farmed biodynamically, and bottled with no added sulphites. The winery is widely regarded as Ronda’s natural-wine pioneer. Note it holds organic certification rather than a Demeter biodynamic certificate, so if certification matters to you, confirm details with the bodega.
Can I buy F. Schatz wines in the UK?
There’s no formal UK distributor. The most reliable route is the bodega’s own online shop at f-schatz.com, which ships internationally including to the UK, though postage isn’t cheap. You may also find the wines through natural-wine specialists and at RAW WINE fairs in London.
How far is F. Schatz from Ronda?
About 10 km from the historic centre. The last stretch is an unsigned dirt track ending at a black gate with two palm trees, so it’s worth taking the exact address and coordinates with you.