Wine
In the early days of tourism in Spain, the wine available was generally considered to be fairly unremarkable. Most visitors and residents stuck to the tried and tested “safe” options of a drinkable and reasonably priced Rioja or Spain’s answer the champagne, cava from the Penedés region.
However, with more hectares dedicated to viticulture than any other country in the world, Spanish wines have improved dramatically in the past 20 years and the country has gained a reputation among wine connoisseurs as a dynamic and enterprising wine producer.
While the top of the range wines may not be comparable in quality to the best French wines, the choice and calibre of middle and lower end wines is excellent and in terms of the quality to cost ratio Spanish wines cannot be beaten.
If you enjoy your wine, be sure to try some of the more recent, notable wines on offer; the Rias Baixas region of Galicia produces some excellent whites from the albariño grape, while good reds are coming out of Ribera del Duero, Jumilla and Rueda. The Priorat region is ranked alongside Rioja for producing consistently good wines.
Menorca has a number of residents who are very knowledgeable and enthusiastic about wine. A handful of these oenologists have taken their passion to the ultimate level, starting up their own vineyards. For the first time since the phylloxera virus wiped out vineyards across Europe at the end of the 19th century, seven new vineyards have appeared on the island in the past few years, with two more in the making. These new wine producers are well aware that they have a long and difficult task ahead of them, but their projects are born from a genuine passion. They know the competition is fierce, that it takes many years to achieve a high quality, and that the scale of their projects (Menorca’s vineyards are small – ranging from 2 to 8 hectares) makes it impossible to produce wine as economically as larger vineyards. However, local wine experts are confident that the climate and soil are well suited to the cultivation of grapes and, given time, we can expect to see good quality wines being produced here.
The island council is actively encouraging the revival of this industry, but these new ventures will also require the support of the consumer in order to survive. Most of the vineyards welcome visitors to tour the premises and, of course, purchase their wines.
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The Binifadet vineyard (Sant Lluís – Tel 971 15 07 15, www.binifadet.com), one of the largest on the island, provides guided tours free of charge that enables visitors to learn about the entire process, from the vine to the bottling stage and taste a variety of their wines which include a rosé cava and a white dessert wine. A great souvenir to take home, Binifadet wines can be packed in wooden boxes that have been approved by the airport authorities and can be checked in as luggage. Visits Monday to Saturday from 10.00h-14.00h and 16.00h-20.00h. |
Other local wines to look out for include an organically-produced red from Sa Forana (Maó – Tel. 607 242 510) and a dry, white malvasia from Sa Cudia (Maó – Tel. 629 330 162).
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Most supermarkets do not stock a very extensive range of wines. If you are looking to sample something a little out of the ordinary, be it Spanish, French or Italian, you will find the specialist wine merchants have an excellent choice and knowledgeable staff on hand to provide advice and recommendations, whether you are looking to spend 3 or 300 euros. The De Vins wine merchants shop also gives you the option to try half a dozen unusual and harder-to-find wines each month, through their wine club. Carefully selected by them for their quality and the value for money they represent, these wines can be delivered to your menorcan home or boat, free of charge. |
