Canary Islands

The Canary Islands are one of the most interesting Spanish wine regions. The grape aphid or phylloxera never made it to the islands. Where in the rest of Europe, it is legally required to plant every vine on an American rootstock, this is not the case on the islands. We also find wide grape varieties here that were already present before the phylloxera epidemic in the 19th century. The islands are, therefore, a treasure trove of possibilities. Some islands are more interesting than others.

Low production and, therefore, high prices mean that these wines will never develop into commercial products outside the archipelago. However, if you visit the Canary Islands, you would do well to taste them carefully. Some grape varieties to look out for are sabro, bujariego, Diego, caleta, and Malvasia. There are others (a total of 218 species are cultivated here) whose names are not known. Lanzarote, the most northeastern island of the archipelago, has possessed the D.O . status since 1994. The vineyard area covers 2170 ha, plus 1100 ha to be replanted.