TNWG Wine Times: Ep 44: Wines of Tenerife
- aplofthouse
- May 12
- 7 min read
Good morning all!
Time to keep those summer holiday destinations in mind when looking at wine options and this week it is all about the Canary Island of Tenerife!
First, as always though, let's give you the latest bookings and announcements that are upcoming:
The Wine and Cheese Network - April Edition:
📍 Yard Gallery, Leah's Yard, Sheffield. Thursday 24th April 6pm - 8.30pm.
🍷 Wine. 🧀 Cheese. 🤝 Networking.
Next Month's Date for your diary is: Thursday 29th May !
Future Events Upcoming:
*Sheffield Wine Week (18th June - 22nd June)
Within the Sheffield Wine Week, you will find The Northern Wine Guy hosting the following:
Thursday 19th June - 'Blind Wine Tasting' at Over the Yard Arm
Friday 20th June - 'Wines of the World' at Cawa Coffee in Broomhill.
Tickets for both will go on sale shortly!
Wines of Tenerife
I've had a couple of requests around whether or not the Canary Islands and Tenerife in particular, have their own 'wine scene'. So I thought I would document a few bits here on the wine history and some places to visit whilst on the island.
The Canary Islands (of which there are 7) all have interesting histories but Tenerife is the largest and the biggest wine producer amongst them, it also has the highest elevation vineyards in Europe.
🍷 Wine Appellations within Tenerife:
Tacoronte-Acentejo, Ycoden Daute Izora, the Valle of Orotava in the north, Valle de Güímar in the east and Abona in the south of the island.
🌍Tenerife Geography
Tenerife has a very diverse geography and climatology. In the north, the cooler temperatures can be noticeable, where as in the south the intense heat and little rain can see vines planted above 1,500 metres. The soils too are unique, after all, this is a volcanic island and bring with it unique nuances to the wines as a result.
There is also unique training of the vines in Tenerife in certain parts of the island, especially the Orotava area, where vines are braided, low to the ground which is extremely labour intense and requires hand harvesting only as you can see from the picture below:
As mentioned, Tenerife is dominated by geography with Mount Teide, Spain's highest mountain and third largest volcano in the world, which rises 3,718 meters above sea level.
Winemaking dates back to the 15th century and actually it was phylloxera free, whilst the world was encountering the problem which ensures some extremely old vines can be found today still too.
Grape Varieties
🍇 LISTAN BLANCO - The most widely planted grape variety in the Canary Islands. Originally from Jerez de la Fontera (known locally as Palomino Fino). Full, citric and a real unique minerality to the wine.
🍇 BABOSO NEGRO - A red grape originally from Alentejo in Portugal (Alfrocheiro). Small, compact bunches, thin skins. A richness fresh approach with fine integrated tannins.
🍇 LISTAN NEGRO - The most planted red grape varietal in the Canary Islands. Natural affinity with the soils. High acidity, red fruit and smoky notes.
🍇 NEGRAMOLL - Second most planted red grape, it produces irregular sized yields, growing better at lower altitudes.
🍇 MALVASIA AROMATICA - At its most intense when producing sweet wine from late harvested grapes.
🍇 ALBILLO CRIOLLO - a white grape varietal, prized in La Palma and Tenerife.
🍇 MARMAJUELO - this white grape is being planted in many new vineyard spots due to its potential for high quality wines. Fragrant and high acidity dictate wines from this grape.
🍇 GUAL - a white grape varietal that originated in Madeira, early ripening, medium sized bunch varietal.
🍇 TINTILLA - late ripening that produces low yields and tends to be grown at high altitudes, a red grape varietal producing small bunch, dark coloured juicy berries.
🍇 VIJARIEGO BLANCO - unique to the Canary Islands, it is a white grape varietal which is the most acidic grape varietal across the islands.
Ok so we have grape varietals but where do I get to see these in a glass? Good question, here are some recommendations on vineyards to access in Tenerife to go and try wines whilst on the island:
Tenerife Wineries to Visit
Bodega Comarcal Valle de Guimar - located in Arafo, on the road to Mount Teide. Created in 1989 on volcanic soils located 300 to 1500 metres above sea level. Wines are under two labels - Brumas de Ayosa and Pico Cho Marcial labels.
Bodega El Lomo - in the district of Tegueste, with a stunning panoramic vista. Between 375 and 450 metres above sea level. Founded in the late 1980s and grows around 250,000 kilos of grapes.
Bodegas Ferrera - setup in the 1940s, 1000 metres above sea level. Ecology is intertwined with this vineyard and ecological measures are taken throughout to preserve the authenticity of the site and organic appeal to the wines, located in the Valle de Guimar which once was a lava stream.
Bodegas Insulares de Tenerife - made up of 660 vine growing partners of the Tacoronte - Acentejo region. The capacity is 17,000 hectolitres. Having won prizes for their wines, a great way to taste through whites, pinks and reds of Tenerife.
Bodega El Cercado - a real rustic small sized feel to this vineyard, which also houses an organic fruit and vegetable farm in Tacoronte.
Bodegas Monje - in the area of El Sauzal, 500 metres above sea level. The wine cellar was built in 1983 BUT this family history dates back to 1750. A great way of experiencing some old authentic Canarian dishes here complimented by the local wines.
⚠️⚠️ TNWG HOT TIPS ⚠️⚠️
Whilst you are in Tenerife, go and try the local indigenous grape varietals and see which you like best and then come back and let me know.
There is very limited ability to find Tenerife wine in the UK, as their export sizes are minimal and most will head to Spain, so if you enjoy a bottle let me know, and I will see if I can source.
Try the above Bodegas, if you are short on time, especially Bodegas Monje and Bodegas Insulares de Tenerife to give you a good overview of the wines available on the island.
🗞️ LATEST DRINKS INDUSTRY ARTICLES 🗞️
It's a temptation that is very real right now. With all that is going on with Trump and tariffs across the global markets, fine wine is certainly getting more than a cursory glance right now as it should do. So will this do enough to entice new investor focus?
OTHER ARTICLES OF NOTE THAT CAUGHT MY EYE THIS WEEK:
📈 MARKETS IN BRIEF 📉
On the week (as at 17th April 09:00 LDN) changes:
EQUITIES: ⬆️ FTSE 100 up 2.49%; ⬆️ DAX up 2.2%; ⬇️ S&P 500 down 1.17%; ⬆️ Nikkei 225 up 0.18%; ⬇️ Dow Jones down 0.2% (yet to open today).
COMMODITIES: ⬆️ Brent Oil up 4.5% ; ⬆️ Crude Oil up 3.5% ; ⬆️ Gold up 6.48%; ⬆️ Silver up 5.1%; ⬆️ Copper up 5.01%
BONDS (in yield terms): ⬇️ UK 2yrs lower 0.062%; ⬇️ UK 10yrs lower 0.17%; ⬇️ German 10yrs lower 0.1395%, ⬆️ US 2yrs higher 0.007%; ⬆️ US 10yrs higher 0.027.
Ok .... where to start ....
Well there has certainly been a beneficial pull to 'safe haven' assets, as gold and bonds (aside from the US) have traded richer (higher in price, lower in yield) on the week as investors alike try to dig into Trump's tariff actions, alongside 'will he, won't he' dynamics. However, there was some relief, with the overall weekly message seeing certain tariffs being rechecked or held until further deadlines, which has elevated pressure on equities too (again outside of the US).
In FX markets, currencies like the Swiss franc have also seen a relatively good performance in light of the safe haven prognosis. This volatility in the market is likely to persist however and with the ECB meeting coming up today likely to show an interest rate cut at the meeting, central banks are looking to stimulate their own economies in light of these global headwinds.
Relations globally clearly have been damaged as a result of the US actions, which is having a negative effect on most economies domestically and further upheaval on an industry by industry perspective is set to continue for the foreseeable future.
Positioning wise, it is a tough pain trade to continue to be dedicated to US tech / blue chip stocks but despite being underwater, the lean from here is still to be on hold. Adding is for me, a toss of a coin and therefore not worth the additional risk ahead of potential further Trump headlines. That being said, the positioning in short gilts is working well for the short end investment bucket and I continue to have a hold to maturity mentality at these levels.
ISAs domestically are at a max of around 4.3% in yield terms as we enter the new tax year, I have already put mine to work and looked at transferring where feasible others at lower yield levels to maximise the capital gains free element. Especially given that there are still rumours that the UK government may well cut the £20k allowance down to £4k before too long - so do get it saved if you can do so. I also believe the UK will reduce interest rates further and this will have a knock on effect of impacting rates given at savings and ISA levels.
Fine wine - we head into En Primeur season this week in Bordeaux. All eyes will be on the ratings that come from the highly regarded professional critics and the pricing adopted by the leading producers. Given the previous rumours of Trump placing upto 200% tariffs on French wine (which fortunately was more of a bluff than reality), there will be increased intrigue as to how the pricing is defined and that will then also dictate secondary market pricing for other vintages and future trading. So it is a critical couple of weeks for fine wine and all eyes will be on the pricing methodology and the first producers who announce their latest vintage. This will therefore likely hold any new investment in the space for the next couple of weeks until it is clearly defined.
That's all from me this week, I hope it has made interesting reading!
As always, do let me know if you have any comments, questions, areas of interest or wines that we should discover.
Have a great Easter and remember - White Chocolate Eggs - go for a Riesling or a creamy Chardonnay, Milk Chocolate - go for a good medium bodied red Merlot, Dark Chocolate - hit your dessert wines!
Best Regards,
Andy a.k.a. The Northern Wine Guy
Comments