The Cyprus wine blog - January 2010

It's January 2010 - the new millennium is not so new any more. We are already through the first decade. Whatever the custom, whatever the country, no matter where we live, the New Year signifies a new start, a new life. People feel a sense of rebirth and renewal facing a new year and want to drop bad habits and embrace new, healthy ones. We take the opportunity to throw out the mistakes of the past year and start anew. We wish each other good luck and promise ourselves to do better in the coming 12 months.

Making wine is probably as old as humankind itself is. The first written tale of wine is said to be in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. Apparently, Noah planted vines and made wine. Scientists have dated fossilized grape vines at 60 million years old. Scientists and historians alike believe that wine was not invented; it was more discovered by chance. They believe that ancient people made the discovery of wine when they found their grapes had spoiled and fermented, creating fermented grape juice. There is a story frequently quoted by many folklorists about a Persian Princess who is credited for the discovery of wine. According to this fable, the Princess - having lost the favour of the King - attempted to poison herself. She went into the basement of the palace and found a jar of grapes, which were fermenting and giving out heat and gas. She assumed that the jar contained poison so she treated herself with as much spoiled grapes as she could. She subsequently became intoxicated and giddy and fell asleep. When she woke up, she found that she her depression disappeared and felt joyous. She eventually told the king of this magical discovery. The King liked her new attitude and after tasting himself the fermented juice, he felt so cheerful that he admitted her back into his good graces.

Historians believe that Neolithic man gave the world winemaking. Not only had the domestication of the grapevine permitted him to take advantage of the potentials of this innovation, but also the development of ceramics. The manufacture of pottery, the earliest of which appeared in 6000 BC, by the Neolithic people was the technological advance that made winemaking possible. The first traces of the production of wine were found around the Caspian Sea and in Mesopotamia, near present-day Iran . Very soon, the cultivation of the vine and the production of wine spread west from Mesopotamia to the Mediterranean coast and Egypt .

Texts from tombs in ancient Egypt prove that wine was in use there around 2700 to 2500 BC. Wine was particularly popular as an offering to the gods - and inevitably, gods became patrons of the drink. The Jews had Noah, the Greeks had Dionysos, the Indians had God Soma, the Egyptians had Osiris, and the Romans Bacchus. In Greek mythology, Dionysus, son of Zeus and his mistress Semele, are named as the inventors of wine. The high regard for wine from the ancient Greeks is best illustrated in a quote from the famed historian Thucydides: "The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learned to cultivate the olive and the grape."

One of the oldest winemaking regions in the world is Cyprus . A study of the evolution of wine in Cyprus reveals three broad and distinct periods, or three leaps of history that have left their marked footprints in the development of the island.

The first period lasted several thousand years, from the time the cultivation of the vine appeared on the scene till the time the Ottomans discouraged winemaking and its consumption. The second period begins with the arrival of the British, which triggered the revival of the wine industry and lasted nearly a century. The third is the period we are currently experiencing, a period of rapid growth - a wine-revolution that aims at providing the international market with world-class wines with Cypriot identity.

The First Period (3500BC - 1898 A.D)

Cypriot wines trace their roots as far back as the Neolithic times, and possibly even before that. Exactly how far back wine production in Cyprus goes is unknown. Excavations on the outskirts of Erimi village unearthed (amongst other artefacts) pottery fragments dated to the chalcolithic period (between 3500 BC-3000 BC). In 2005, a team of Italian archaeologists led by Maria-Rosaria Belgiorno examined the chemical signatures of 18 of these. Twelve showed traces of tartaric acid (a component of wine), proving that the 5,500-year-old vases were used for wine. Another archaeological excavation near the village of Pyrgos on the outskirts of Limassol led to the discovery of a Bronze Age (2500-2000 BC) perfumery. Near this perfumery, an olive press, a winery, and copper smelting works were also discovered. Wine containers and even the seeds of grapes were unearthed.

The island's winemaking tradition is already well documented, but these latest discoveries prove that Cypriots were the region's oldest winemakers. Wine was being traded at least as early as 2300 BC, the date of a shipwreck carrying over 2,500 amphorae, discovered in 1999, lying on the seabed off Cyprus ' southern shore. These findings predate winemaking by ancient Greeks by at least 1,500 years.

After the arrival of the Mycenaeans in around 1400 BC and the mass waves of Achaean Greeks, the Greek language, religion and customs spread throughout the island. It was during this period that wine drinking became the pre-eminent beverage and played an important social and cultural role in the daily life of the ancient Cypriots. At Enkomi on the South East coast of Cyprus, a 12th century BC building with benches along its walls, one of the most imposing public buildings of this Late Bronze Age town, was considered by the excavator as the main reception hall where feasts used to take place and wine was available. In an adjoining room, large storage jars were found which were used for oil, wine or grain. At Maa-Palaeokastro, a 12th century BC settlement in the Paphos District, excavations have brought to light a large number of drinking cups of Mycenaean type. This settlement has been identified as a military outpost where immigrants from the Aegean settled around 1200 BC. The drinking cups are no doubt indicative of what they did in their spare time.

The fame of Cyprus wines spread throughout the ancient world and were richly praised and immortalized by contemporary poets, historians and artists. There was praise for Cyprus wines in Homer's poems and, thanks to his writings, we have precious insights into the life and customs of ancient Greeks. The Cypriot poet Stassinos, in his epic songs about Cyprus , mentions the myth of Anios and his three daughters Oeno, Spermo and Elaida, who had the magical powers of producing wine, wheat and oil respectively. Homer and Pindaros paid tribute to Cyprus wines, and in 735 BC, Hesiod described the manufacturing process of the sweet "Nama" of Cyprus .

"Leave the grapes ten days in the sun, ten nights and then five days in the shade and eight more in the jar".

Reference to the Cypriot wines is made also by Euripides, one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens . He wrote of large numbers of pilgrimages visiting Cyprus to follow the cult of Aphrodite and to taste the island's "Nama" wines. Cypriot wines are also mentioned in the Bible. In Solomon's "Song of Songs", the verse "My beloved is unto me as a henna flower in the vineyards of Egadi" makes reference to a village in Cyprus . The people of Ancient Egypt loved wine and were among the first to record the harvest of grapes on stone tablets and the walls of their tombs. The Egyptians, and particularly the Pharoahs of Egypt, showed special preference and affection to Cypriot wines.

In the Hellenistic period, wine came to embody Greek culture and became more widely available. Greek citizens spent much of their time discussing wine and finding ways of making it even more enjoyable. Wine was used not only in the Symposia, the Greek drinking parties, but also medicinally to clean wounds and as a safer drink than water. They also traded different wines among the many Greek islands. Cypriot wines were in great demand by the ancient Greeks, and later by the Romans. In many early Greek books, Cyprus is referred to as "Evinos" - or the island of good wine.

Wine also played a role in the religion of the Greek dominions, with Dionysus as its specific deity. In Greek mythology, Dionysus was also the God of Ecstasy and his cult was one of the mystery religions. He produced the first wine from the vine, and spread the art of tending grapes, but he also had a dual side to his nature - on the one hand he could bring about joy and divine ecstasy, and on the other hand, brutal unthinking rage, both reflecting the nature of wine. No other god has ever been more joyfully celebrated than Dionysus and his Roman replica, Bacchus. Dionysus was one of the most important gods in everyday life, and was associated with several key concepts. One was rebirth after death. His dismemberment by the Titans and return to life is symbolically echoed in tending vines. Each year the vines are pruned back sharply and left to become dormant through the winter, ready to bear fruit in the following spring.

The mosaics in the House of Dionysus at Paphos depict the story of the first mortal Icarios to be taught how to make wine. The teacher was Dionysus, the god of wine himself. According to mosaic picture and mythology, Icarios offered wine to two shepherds who got drunk, hence the inscription in Greek "the first wine drinkers". The friends of the shepherds unfortunately killed Icarios because they thought he had poisoned them.

At the archaeological museum in Nicosia , there are numerous ancient oenochoes, pots and amphorae verifying the role and the importance of wine for the Cypriot society during the period of the 6th to the 2nd century BC. It is worth mentioning that on one item of pottery found in the ancient town of Marion near Polis Chrysochous, there is the inscription in Greek ?????? ??? ??? ??, which means "Be happy and drink well".

Cypriot wine as well as wines from the Aegean islands was traded throughout the known ancient world.

In antiquity, wine was stored in a clay vase called an amphora. The typical amphora looked like a root vegetable with a long neck. The bottom end was never flat; rather it was pointed or knob-like. The average Greek amphora had a capacity of about 40 litres, while in later times the average Roman amphora was 26 litres. Bars had special stands to hold their amphorae. These stands were usually tripods and were often placed against walls. Both the amphora and its tripod were robust enough to survive sea voyages, which facilitated the trade of wines throughout the Mediterranean Sea . The amphora also kept wine for long periods if properly sealed. Olive oil was often used as a sealant to avoid oxidation. The amphora had a key role in the advancement of the wine trade.

During the Hellenistic period, the Greeks introduced winemaking techniques to their colonies as far away as Italy , France and Spain , whilst Alexander the Great's conquest of the Persian Empire in the 4th century BC spread the wine trade eastwards. Greeks embraced wine drinking more enthusiastically than any culture before them. Wine became a drink not just for the elite, but for everyone. It is said that of all the vessels Greeks used daily, more than half related to the consumption of wine. Wine was considered to be a gift from Dionysus, the patron god and symbol of wine, and was used in religious rituals. And Greek doctors, including Hippocrates, prescribed it for their patients.

Greeks considered it barbaric to drink wine straight, so they diluted it in varying proportions with water. And they learned to add herbs and spices to mask spoilage. Another addition to this delicious taste profile was the flavour of pine resin. Greeks typically stored their wine in porous clay jugs, which had to be sealed to preserve the wine. They sealed the jugs with the resin of pine trees, which imparted its unique essence. Wine was important to the economies of Greek cities. It was traded within Greece and exported throughout the Mediterranean world. As Greece began to colonize the western Mediterranean , the Greeks took their grapevines and winemaking technology with them. The ruling dynasty of Ptolemies, the successors of Alexander, exploited the island's resources and were particularly fond of the Cypriot nectar. We know that under the reign of Ptolemy I, a great number of Jews left Palestine and settled in various places in the Eastern Mediterranean including Cyprus . The Jewish community of the island may have been charged with the duty of sending Cypriot wine to Jerusalem where it was used in sacrifices in the Temple .

The Romans who conquered Greece adopted Dionysus under the deity of Bacchus. The Romans showed preference to sweet rather than dry wine. The Ancient Romans placed great importance on the development and cultivation of wine. Like the Greeks, the Romans were wine-lovers and well-organized vine growers. They wrote handbooks on viticulture and wine production, and created a tradition still maintained in Italy .

Roman farmers changed from growing grain to grapes and combined Greek influence with their own farming background through viticulture. The Roman Empire is responsible for the spread of wine throughout Europe including such places as France , Spain , Italy and even parts of Britain . In 58 BC, Cyprus also became part of the Roman province of Alicia in Asia Minor . Many fine reports praising the Cypriot wines are found written during the age of the Roman Empire . Large quantities of wine amphorae have been unearthed in the Roman villas at Kato Paphos, as well as wooden barrels, pottery amphorae and leather skins which were commonly used for the transport of wine. Marc Anthony and Cleopatra are said to have toasted each other with it. Mark Anthony, Shakespeare informs us, gave Cyprus to Cleopatra with the words, "your sweetness, my love, is equal to Cyprus "Nama". Sinesius refers to Cyprus wine by calling it most "delicate", whilst Pliny, a Roman officer, encyclopaedist and author, found Cyprus wine superior to all others. Rome was a huge market for wine. The public's demand for wine at the time of the Roman Empire reached a new height. Many cities had wine bars on almost every street and festivals were held to ensure a good year's harvest of grapes.

Wine trade in the 4th and 5th centuries continued to expand with Constantinople as the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire . Dionysus had a huge cult following among followers of the Roman polytheistic religion, yet wine would play its integral part in another significant religion during the empire - Christianity. Many scholars today believe that Jesus Christ did indeed partake in the drinking of wine; a claim which seems to uphold his choice of wine as the substitute (or actual embodiment) of his blood at the Last Supper. With the fall of the Roman Empire, wine continued to be associated with Christianity and the Mediterranean . During the Byzantine years, the viticulture tradition continued to flourish. Orthodox Christianity was closely associated with the consumption of wine. During religious ceremonies, wine was blessed as part of the Holy Communion. The sweet Cyprus wine was in great demand.

In the middle ages, the Crusaders conquered the island and Cypriot wines became available in the western part of Europe . The earliest record of Cyprus wine being drunk in the west is dated at 1178 when Count Baldwin of Guines offered it to the Archbishop of Rheims. King Richard the Lionheart was also responsible for introducing it to England after he conquered the island in 1191. He sold Cyprus for 100,000 dinars to the Order of the Knights Templar, who established their "Grand Commandery" at Kolossi Castle . The Knights Templar acquired the vineyards on the southern hills of Troodos from Avdimou to Kilani in the North and Paphos in the West. However, a year later the Templars faced difficulties in the ruling of the island and sold it to the King of Jerusalem, Guy de Lusignan. This started a new period for Cyprus under the Frankish domination.

When the fall of Acre in 1281 ended the Latin Christian presence in Palestine and Syria , the Knights Hospitallers moved their headquarters from Acre to Cyprus . Like all religious orders, the Knights Hospitallers (or Knights of St. John ) acquired land on a large scale and produced their own wine. They administered their estates based on the feudal system where the control of a group of vineyards was under the authority of a commandery. The development and promotion of wines was actively encouraged by the Hospitallers. It is worth noting that during this period, the name "Commandaria" was given to the sweet wine first described by Hesiodos. Since then, "Commandaria" has been the wine with the oldest tradition worldwide and is made in the same fashion when it was first introduced.

Among Commandaria's fans was King Philippe of France , who called it the "Apostle of Wines" in the 13th century. Francis I of France attempted to naturalise the Cyprus grapevine at Fontainebleau but without success. Rudolf von Sudheim, a German traveller who visited Cyprus between 1336 and 1341, mentioned the vineyards of Egadi as located in the mountainous area of Paphos. He also wrote that the nobles of Cyprus are the richest in the world, and that there are no greater or better drinkers than in Cyprus .

In the winter of 1363, the Master of the Vintners Company in the presence of the Kings of England, Scotland , France and Denmark feasted King Peter of Cyprus , during a visit to the city of London . The wines served were from Cyprus and were highly praised.

During the 300 years of Lusignan rule (1192-1489), wine production was refined and expanded. French historian De Mas Latrie calls Commandaria wine "une des especes superieures de ces vins justement renommes".

Estienne de Lusignan, writing in 1580, praises the wine of Cyprus as the best in the world. The mediaeval Cyprus wine industry was commercially the most important in the region. The Venetian period, which followed (1489-1571), gave new impetus to wine trading, and the island's wines became popular in the Latin world. The Venetians traded the wine from Cyprus to Venice and from there to the rest of Europe and England .

The Ottomans invaded Cyprus in 1571 and occupied it for over 300 years until 1878 when they ceded the island to Britain . During this period, little was done to help the wine growers. Wine consumption in the Middle East and Eastern Mediterranean , the birthplace of grape wine, had all but ceased (though some production continued). The rules of Islam forbid the drinking of wine, which is seen as a gift from God which man misused and therefore relinquished his right to drink. However, from the writing of several visitors, we can deduce that even under those difficult for viticulture times, their cultivation in Cyprus continued to provide a living for those residing in the mountain villages. In these areas, where the soil is not sufficiently fertile for agriculture and the land is fractioned in small fields, wine grape growing wrote history and determined the distribution of human settlements.

The Ottoman Turks, following the Moslem tradition, discouraged winemaking and its consumption. They imposed heavy taxation on vineyards, prompting the villagers to destroy their vines, rather than allow the taxman to take possession of them. Wine was subject to an arbitrary triple taxation (10% levied on grapes, 10% on the wine and 8% on its exports). Eventually, the Cyprus wines fell into obscurity and lost their fame.

Seigneur de Villamont, from the Duchy of Brittany, wrote about the Turks in Cyprus in 1589: "And although their law forbids them wine, they will drink to excess without scruple or shame".

One of the few publications on Cyprus during the Ottoman Turkish occupation was a book written in 1772 by the Florentine Giovanni Mariti called "Del Vino di Cipro", in which special reference is made to Commandaria. In addition, from evidence given by Alexander Drummond, the British Consul in Aleppo who visited the island in May 1745, one can be assured that wine was still a major agricultural product for export. The year 1878 marked the handover of the island from Ottoman rule to the British Empire . The arrival of the British brought with it a revival in the winemaking industry.

To be continued..

Wine News and Information

This year marks the 200th anniversary of Darwin 's birth, as well as 150 years since the publication of his thesis, "On the Origin of Species". Much has been made of the life and achievements of this great English biologist, but few fully appreciate his contribution to wine. As part of his study of climbing plants, Darwin had a particular fascination with grapevines. He was intrigued by the fact that the vines produce tendrils (for climbing) or bunches of grapes (for reproduction) opposite each leaf - a reminder that grapevines evolved in a forest habitat 60 million years ago. The vine could adapt to a shaded environment and climb to sunlight using tendrils, or, when at the top of the forest, produce fruit.

In The Movement and Habits of Climbing Plants (1865), Darwin writes: "It is also an interesting fact that intermediate states between organs fitted for widely different functions, may be observed on the same individual plant of. the common vine; and these cases illustrate in a striking manner the principle of the gradual evolution of species." So, according to Darwin , the vine is a perfect example of evolutionary principles - fair praise indeed from the father of evolution. Today, grape growers the world over manage their vineyards to expose fruit to sunlight and so improve wine quality.

Another significant contribution of Darwin to the modern world of wine is probably his greatest. From the 1860s onwards, the vineyards of France planted the European wine grape "Vitis vinifera" which was increasingly challenged by the root louse phylloxera. This little yellow insect killed countless thousands of hectares of vines. Scientists at the time were hard pressed to find the cause of this devastation, and, once discovered, then to control the pest. The answer came from Darwin 's principles of evolution.

Given that the pest came from America where native vines grew without been affected, the obvious solution was to graft the sensitive European vines to rootstocks derived from American species. This approach was based on Darwin 's theories of adaptation and was proposed by French scientists Planchon and Millardet of Montpellier, and Riley and Munson in America , who are recognised as being instrumental in saving Europe from phylloxera. The principle of grafting on to phylloxera-resistant rootstocks is still used today, and is one of the best examples of biological control known to agriculture.

There are significant consequences that are already occurring because of climate change, since it affects almost every aspect of living of the human kind. It affects the agriculture industry with the unpredictable change in the weather. It also affects the temperature of the globe, which causes the permafrost to melt down increasing to sea water level and loss of inhabitants of some animals. Global warming is threatening the future of humankind. With the wine industry, it is highly important to be able to predict the climate because wine grapes are particularly affected by changing weather. Extreme weather conditions affect the quality of the grapes. Vintage quality of grapes is easily ruined by extended rainfall or when temperatures reach 35?C or more, causing the grapevine to shut down.

American farmers, according to a recent U.S.D.A. report, are already feeling the impacts. Climate change will lead to increased crop disease and pest prevalence, higher livestock mortality due to hotter summers and more rapid weed growth due to elevated atmospheric carbon dioxide levels. There are significant consequences that are already occurring as a result of climate change, and they are only likely to get worse if action isn't taken. The United States Department of Agriculture will devote an additional $90 million over the next four years to climate change research and will also join at least 21 other nations in a new international research cooperative focused on climate change and agriculture.

Monolithos Monthly News

To everything, there is a season, and this is most true in a vineyard. Each season brings a new joy and challenge. Maintaining a grape vineyard is a year-round labour of love for grape farmers. In late autumn, the vines' long shoots are cut off and the leaves turn brown and fall. In December, depending on the local weather, the vines enter a dormant stage. Early January is the time to commence pruning to help control the yield and quality of the coming year's grape harvest. Pruning is cutting the long, dry vines to allow for new growth. If not pruned back, the number of buds that would bloom and turn into fruit would be of lower quality. This task should be completed before spring and especially before the last few frosts. Waiting too long to trim the vines will make them more susceptible to damaging buds. During this process, great care must be taken to prune efficiently, yet not to remove too much of the vine as this will limit the crop.

At the winery, work on the stabilisation of the 2009 vintage white wines is underway. All 2008 wines have been bottled and are available for tasting and purchasing.

If at any time you are passing near the village of Pachna and wish to visit the winery or sample any of our products, Martin Wood will be pleased to meet and assist you at his "Fig Tree Villa" in Pachna, so do not hesitate to phone him at 25-816212 or 99-165995.

Regards from all of us here at Monolithos and always remember:

With wine and hope, anything is possible.

Spanish Proverb