We had already driven through the wine area of Lanzarote for a couple of times, admiring the unique way, farmers manage to grow wine on the lava of the volcanoes. Walls in the form of a horseshoe protect every grapevine from the harsh winds, with the wine often nestled in a pit, depending on how deep below the lava the good soil lies.
The dark layer of lapilli (tiny volcanic stones), which is in places several metres thick, is put to good use as it heats up during the day and absorbs moisture from the air at night. As there is very little rainfall, this allows water to be stored in the little lava stones.
We visited the winery Los Bermejos together with my parents for a wine tasting, where we tried mostly dry Malvasia and Diego but also red wine made from Listán grapes.
Next we drove to Bodegas Rubicón, where we could visit the old farm house and had lunch at their covered terrace, accompanied by their wines.
On another occasion, we visited Bogedas Grifo, the oldest winery on the island with 250 years of history. We walked through a museum in their historic buildings, and did another wine tasting after exploring their fascinating vineyards.
In the vineyard, every possibility for the wine to reach the soil underneath the lava was used, placing wine into natural pits or digging as deep as necessary for them. The effort to grow wine in this environment was outstanding.
We liked especially the dry Malvasia wines of Lanzarote, a treat to enjoy when visiting Lanzarote.
But we hadn’t had enough of the volcanoes of Lanzarote yet, and will go for a hike to an old volcano tomorrow – more soon!