Lebanese wine

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Lebanon Map: Vitis vinifera evidence from ancient Rome shows wine was cultivated and then domesticated in Lebanon, at least two thousand years before Alexander the Great

Phoenicians of the coastal strip were instrumental in spreading wine and viticulture throughout the Mediterranean
in ancient times. Despite the many conflicts of the region, the country has an annual production of about 12,000,000 bottles of wine.

History

See also: History of ancient Lebanon and Phoenicians and wine
Bekaa
, Lebanon

Chrysippus of Soli
are both said to have enjoyed their wine, in fact the latter died from overindulgence.

Wine played an important part in

Christian Eucharist. The Bacchus temple in Baalbek outlines the instrumental role that the Phoenician played in the development of the Ancient World around the Mediterranean sea.[6] through the widespread peaceful settlements that reached Spain. Genesis 14:18 mentions that the Phoenician King Melchizedek gave bread and wine (yayin) to Abraham, and Hosea 14:8 suggests "his fame shall be like the wine of Lebanon". Wine also featured heavily in Ugaritic poetry
such as the Rapiuma :

"Day long they pour the wine, ... must-wine, fit for rulers. Wine, sweet and abundant, Select wine... The choice wine of Lebanon, Most nurtured by El."[citation needed]

Bottle of Château Musar 1999

Once Lebanon became part of the

Arak
, an ouzo-like spirit flavored with aniseed.

The first winemaker in Lebanon was Chateau Joseph Spath (Chateau Chbat) in 1847 at aaramoun kesrouan, later following of winemaker at

Jesuits planted Cinsaut vines from Algeria at Château Ksara near Zahlé in the central Beqaa Valley.[7] In 1868 a French engineer, Eugène François Brun, set up Domaine des Tourelles, and others followed, notably Gaston Hochar's Chateau Musar
in 1930.

The French influence between the World Wars promoted a culture of wine drinking, as did the sophisticated Mediterranean culture of Beirut at that time.

Frenchman Yves Morard of Chateau Kefraya was arrested as a spy during the Israeli invasion, and was only released when he proved to the Israelis that he knew how to make wine.[8]

The end of the conflict in the 1990s brought a new momentum to the viticulture and we could track the renaissance of the Lebanese wines to the set up of Domaine Wardy in 1997 and Massaya in 1998 that marked the active involvement of French wine dynasties in the Bekaa Valley.[9] Back then, the number of producers was around 5 and at present more than 50[10] wineries are active in Lebanon.

The 2006 conflict, did not really change the trend even if some wineries were on the edge of missing the harvest (Ksara) and got collateral damages (Massaya). However, the media coverage translated into surge in demand during the fighting as British buyers in particular bought Lebanese wine as a mark of solidarity.[11]

Grape varieties

Wine producing areas in Lebanon (red)

Lebanese winemakers have favored French grapes, particularly

Cinsault, Carignan and Grenache.[citation needed
]

There are also grapes that are specific and indigenous to Lebanon such as Obaideh and Merwah.[12][13]

Wineries

Visitors at the chateau, on a wine-tasting visit.

Most of the major wineries have their vineyards in the southern Beqaa Valley. Château Ksara remains much the biggest, with 70% of all the country's production.[14] It is no longer connected with the Jesuit house of Tanail, it was sold in 1972 and suffered considerably during the civil war, but has now bounced back with reds and rosés made from Rhone varietals such as Carignan and Cinsaut.

Next biggest is

Bustros
family in the late 1980s.

Cave Kouroum is a winery located in Kefraiya. Founded by Mr Bassim Rahhal in 1998. Cave Kouroum has an area of 7500 meters squared. Produces red, white, and rose wine.

Chateau Musar is perhaps the best known in the West, it was a particular favourite of Auberon Waugh. Musar achieved international recognition at the Bristol Wine Fair of 1979 [15] and for a long time was the only Lebanese wine widely available in the United Kingdom. The second wine, 'Hochar', is made in a lighter style for earlier drinking. Chateau Musar is known for transporting the grapes across the front line during the civil war. In recent years many smaller wineries have come up in different areas cross Lebanon, some of these include Domaine Wardy in the Beqaa and Karam Wines in Jezzine, South of Lebanon.

Currently the sector exports over 50% of the production mainly to the United Kingdom, France and the United States.

List of Lebanese wines

Wine Name Date of Production Origin Founder
Karam Wines [1] 2002 Jezzine Captain Habib Karam
Château Héritage 1888 Qabb Ilyas Touma Family (la Famille Touma)
Domaine Wardy 1997 Beqaa Valley Managed and Owned by the Wardy Family
Château Kefraya
 1951 N/A
Château Khoury N/A N/A
Château Marsyas 2007 Beqaa Valley Johnny R.Saadé family
Château Musar
 1930 Beqaa Valley Gaston Hochar
Château Nakad in Jdita N/A N/A
Château Qanafar 2010 Beqaa Valley Naim family
Couvent St. Sauveur N/A N/A
Domaine des Tourelles 1868 Beqaa Valley, Chtaura François-Eugène Brun
Château St Thomas 1995
Qabb Elias
 Touma Family
Cave du monastère st. Jean 1720 (Renovated 2006) Khenchara
RIACHI [2] 1839 Khenchara Moussa Riachi
Cave Kouroum 1998 Kefraiya Bassim Rahhal
Clos de Cana N/A N/A
Domaine de Baal 1995 Zahle - Bekaa Valley Sebastien Khoury
IXSIR
 2008 Batroun Gabriel Rivero
Château Ksara 1857 Beqaa Valley Zafer Chaoui
Massaya N/A N/A
Nabise Mont Liban N/A N/A N/A
Terre Joie [3] 2011
West Beqaa
 Joe Saade
V Divino N/A Beqaa Valley Vanessa Srouji
St. George 2010 N/A Kabalan Abou Jaoude

See also

References

  • Karam, Michael (2005) "The Wines of Lebanon" Saqi Books - reference book on Lebanese wine
  1. ^ McGovern, Patrick E. 2003. Ancient wine: the search for the origins of viniculture. Princeton University Press
  2. ^ quoted from McGovern, Patrick E. 2003. op. cit., p. 202
  3. ^ MIT technology helps map ancient Phoenician shipwrecks MIT press release
  4. ^ Baalbec - Ruins of the Temple of Bacchus Liverpool Museums
  5. ^ Roberts prints of Baalbek Medina Arts
  6. ^ The origins of wine and wine making
  7. ^ Scruton, Roger (13 March 2006). "Roger Scruton falls for Lebanese wine". New Statesman.
  8. ^ Kassman, L Lebanon's Wine Industry: New Face for Country Once Known for War Archived 15 November 2008 at the Wayback Machine Voice of America, 2 December 2004
  9. ^ "Lebanese Wine - Prestige Magazine". Prestige Magazine. 13 November 2014. Retrieved 22 December 2016.
  10. ^ Wine, 209 Lebanese. "Lebanese Wineries - Discover All Lebanese Wine Makers". 209 Lebanese Wine.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link)
  11. ^ Adrian Blomfield and Ramsay Short Women rescue Lebanon's wine after fighting threatens to ruin harvest Daily Telegraph, 25 August 2006
  12. ^ "Obaideh Wine Information". Wine-Searcher.
  13. ^ Musallam, Raya (20 January 2018). "Global Dynamics of the Wine Industry Winter 2018: Lebanon's Native Grapes: Obaideh and Merwah".
  14. ^ Speetjens, Peter Lebanese wine looks to make a comeback Communicate October 2005
  15. ^ A Reason interview with Lebanese wine writer Michael Karam Reason.com

Jean-Pierre BEL, Les paysages viticoles de la Bekaa (Liban), Paris : BoD, 2009, 232 p

Jean-Pierre BEL, Vignes et vins au Liban : 4 000 ans de succès, Paris : BoD, 2014, 416 p

External links