The flavor of pear in wine of Castille-et-Léon

‘Por fin se ha hecho justicia.’ (Finally, justice has been served) This strongly-worded statement was made by the Denomination of Origin Utiel-Requena in Spain’s Autonomous Region of Valencia as part of a press announcement in July. It refers to a Spanish Supreme Court ruling that was fully ratified at the end of September, closing a decade-long conflict between the region’s three DOs that pitted Valencia against Utiel-Requena and Alicante. The latter two had demanded that grapes fro ...

Growers in the village of Melambes in Crete saw devastating wildfires cause ‘complete damage to 300 acres (121.4 hectares) of old pre-phylloxera vines’ in July, according to an online crowdfunding page created to support viticulture in the area and help those affected. Although fire burned 90% of the vineyard, it’s hoped some damaged vines can be rescued, said winemaker Iliana Malihin, of her namesake winery and who has spearheaded a community project to revive the site in recent years. Ye ...

By 1965, the vineyards of Condrieu had largely been abandoned – phylloxera and two world wars had decimated the place and its people. There were just 8ha of vines remaining on these granite slopes. If it weren’t for the hard work of a few steadfast vignerons, the appellation might have disappeared entirely, reclaimed by the forest. Thankfully, Condrieu survived and has since flourished – but great appellations have been lost before. We know this because some have recently been rediscovered. In f ...