The second generation of pioneers in
volcanic winemaking on Tenerife
This is what happens when you’ve been in the wine business for over 30 years…
You start dealing with the next generation: often the sons or daughters of the original pioneers in their region.
In this case, it’s the son.
Jorge Méndez is the son of Juan Jesús Méndez of Viñátigo. His father was the pioneer who brought back lost grape varieties on the island of Tenerife.
Over 30 years ago, he began searching for rare grape varieties that were still found across the island.
And often very special ones, since the Canary Islands are one of the few places in Europe where vines can still be planted on original rootstock, and not the American rootstocks that are mandatory elsewhere. The phylloxera louse never reached the islands, so the vines don’t need to be resistant, as they do in the rest of Europe.
It was top sommelier Josep Roca from the 3-star restaurant El Celler de Can Roca who introduced me to the fantastic wines of Juan Jesús over 25 years ago.
I didn’t know them at the time, but became a fan instantly! Josep even gave me a few bottles from his own cellar to take home. That’s how enthusiastic he was about the project.
Barely a year later, we had already become the only foreign distributor of the fantastic wines from Viñátigo!
And now there’s Jorge, respectfully continuing his father’s legacy. Admittedly, the early years were a bit tense.
That’s how it goes between father and son. The father focused on the grape varieties, while the son brings the spotlight to the different volcanic terroirs.
But in the meantime, Jorge’s top wines have become a staple in the
Viñátigo range. Five years ago, I gave things a little push by convincing the father of his son’s
quality and strong terroir philosophy.
And at the end of last year, these wines finally made it to us! A historic moment.
Although in very limited quantity. We’re talking about just 60 to 120 bottles per cuvée. Each wine comes from
old vines planted in volcanic soils.
They were available for tasting en primeur during our spring tasting, and the kind-hearted Jorge was personally behind the tasting table to share all the details.
Each wine is named after the plot where the old vines of
Listán blanco (for the whites) and
Baboso,
Tintilla,
Bastardo, and
Vijariego tinto (for the red) are planted.
So for this mailing, we’ve created a special “2nd Generation Volcanic Wine Pack” featuring the very last bottles of these gems:
4 x 3 bottles – 3 white wines and 1 red.
Only 14 packs of 12 bottles available in total.
A unique opportunity to taste the different volcanic soils of the new generation in a single pack.