The team at Wine Tours Lanzarote has come up with a brand new tour called “The Wine Experience,” and we attended the very first running of it.
The new experience takes you further in depth on the island’s lesser known grapes, and Anita, our guide, also took us through the growing process for the grapes, how the wine is made here and showed us around the vines and the production areas of the two wineries.
Los Bermejos
Our first stop was at one of Lanzarote’s most famous wineries, and they use the iconic bottle we all know and love. We were told the story behind it – the family were looking for something that would readily identify their wines, and they found a company in Italy that was using the bottle for storing olive oil. They thought it would be perfect and even told them to leave the little lip on used for pouring the oil.
The Wine Experience tour always starts at Los Bermejos, and after seeing the winery, we settled in their garden, where we tried their superb Brut Nature, which is made using the Champagne method, hand turning every bottle. Then we moved on to two wines made from the Diego grape, and finally a Moscatel dessert wine. Cheese and bread were served as well. Anita explained how to taste wines, and coached us in the different expressions to describe the colour, aroma and taste, using lots of useful props and scent bottles.
It isn’t part of the tour, but by coincidence David, who is Lanzarote’s Vermouth maker was there, and we had a chance to chat with him and he explained how he makes his fabulous drink, which is based on Malvasia wine.
After Bermejos, the next stop on The Wine Experience will always be one of two boutique wineries – they alternate weekly, and for our visit, we went to Roca Negra. But on some tours you’ll go to Bodega Erupción.
Roca Negra
This is a new and very small winery run by Pepe, a lawyer, and his wife Raquel, who is an optician. They’ve owned their house in the wine region for many years, and like so many, he planted vines and passed the grapes on to local wine makers to make wine for his own family. But they’re now making their own wine, in small quantities, and it’s excellent!
We tried three wines there, and the standout for us was their red. Pepe and Anita took us through the winery and told us about the history of the place and the specifics of the process they use. And then we settled under their magnificent flamboyant tree to taste the wines and eat some excellent goat’s cheese.
The Tour
The tour price is 95 €, and it includes transport, tasting of 7 premium wines, 2 cheese tastings and all materials and tasting aids.
The regular wine tour is great for your first experience of Lanzarote wines, but this new one is specifically designed for returning guests and wine lovers.
Here’s where you can book it: The Wine Experience.
