Montilla-Moriles, southern Spanish denominated wine zone in andalucía, 40 km/25 miles south of Cordoba (see map under spain), producing both fortified and unfortified wines in the style of sherry, usually known simply as Montilla. For many years wine from the country around the towns of Montilla and Moriles found its way into sherry soleras. The practice largely ceased in 1945 when the area was awarded a separate do, although wines made from the pedro ximénez grape, some of them very fine, are still legally exported to jerez and neighbouring málaga for blending. Since it became a region in its own right, Montilla has had to contend with a popular image as an inferior, cheap alternative to sherry.
