JUMILLA COSTA BLANCA

Set in the rolling sierras of Murcia's northern corner, Jumilla, a small agricultural and market town well off the beaten track, is a mecca for wine buffs.  First planted by the Romans, the vineyards are among Europe's oldest and some of the very few not to have been damaged by the 19th century phylloxera outbreak. The full-bodied and intense reds have an alcohol content as high as 16 per cent - best drunk mature, the mid-1980s are the years to look out for.  You can learn more in the idiosyncratic Museo del Vino (wine museum) before a visit to the lovely Franciscan monastery and its little museum, the Museo Jeronimo Molina, Other high points here include the castle, a pretty theatre, some fine old mansions around the main square and a remarkable local museum crammed with objects,