Whilst wines from Lanzarote have won plaudits and awards in competitions around the world they’ve never been matched against each other before and judged – until now. As the first contest for locally produced wines will be taking place on May 14th and 15th at the Castillo de San Jose in Arrecife, where a respected panel of judges will be working their way through the best bottles that bear the ‘Denominacion de Origen de Lanzarote’ mark.
This may well come as something of a surprise to many first time visitors, who are often amazed that this arid little island is able to support anything much in the way of viniculture at all given Lanzarote’s exceedingly low rainfall figures.
But as many of our regular guests can happily attest Playa Blanca is just a short ten to fifteen minute drive away from Lanzarote’s unique wine growing region of La Geria, placing some great tasting local wines within temptingly easy reach! And it’s a delightful drive too, not least as you can pop into the bodegas that line the route for free tastings and samples.
However, if all of this conjures up bucolic scenes of well ordered rows of tall tethered vines against a backdrop of green and rolling fields then you’re in for something of a jolt, as the wine region here is cut from the same cloth as the Timanfaya National Park – which is to say raw, volcanic and rugged. With farmers planting each vine in a small stone circle, called a zocos, which is designed to protect the plants from the coruscating Trade winds that blow across the whole of the island from April through to August in particular – a period which is also particularly delicate growing season for younger vines.
The vines are also planted in picon, the black volcanic chippings which are a feature of all farmers’ fields here. Not least as this helps to protect the roots of plants from the intense heat of the sun whilst also retaining any moisture, such as overnight dew and rainfall.
But what are wines produced here on Lanzarote really like? Are they actually any good? It’s important to appreciate that they up against some serious opposition if they are to be judged alongside other domestic regions, such as Rioja and Ribero del Duero. Both of which are hard to beat as reds and which are more widely available in most local supermarkets at cheaper prices than any of the local wines.
However that’s also partly a reflection of economies of scale and the marketing muscle of these other regions and their producers. As in truth Lanzarote has some serious heritage as a wine producer dating back to the 1500’s and boasts 13 working bodegas, the oldest and best known of which is El Grifo. But in recent years it’s been smaller more boutique producers such as Los Bermejos which have been garnering most of the awards and plaudits.
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