Winding their way up a steep hillside of volcanic rock, bathed in equal measure by the equatorial sun and the moisture-laden trade winds you will find the vineyards of Suertes del Marqués. Like many other producers in the Canary Islands, Suertes is both a museum and a laborato-ry of ancient grape varieties. The dizzying array of grapes is almost Portuguese in their obscurity and the tempera-ments of owner Jonatan Garcia Lima and winemaker Luis Seabra are patiently dedicated to allowing the potential of these soils speak through their brilliantly transparent wines. These wines taste volcanic: vibrant and mineral.

The Valle de la Orotava is one of the oldest wine growing regions in the Canary Islands centered around the port of Orotava. Originally a center of Malmsey-like wine pro-

SUERTES DEL MARQUES

duction, the region had a reputation for its fortified white wines. Listán Negro and Blanco (aka Palomino), Malva-sia and Malvasia Rosada, Negramoll, Baboso Negro and Blanco, Moscatel and Moscatel Negra, Tintilla, Vijariego and Vijariego Negro, Gual, Verdello, Forastera Blanca, Torrontés, Marmajuelo and Pedro Ximénez are the grapes you can find growing in this DO located on the north coast of Tenerife, the largest of the Canary Islands. Precariously rooted on the slopes of Pico de Teide – the world’s third largest volcano – these soils are, needless to say, profoundly volcanic. In fact, there is no other soil on the Island that wasn’t spewed out by Teide or broken down from the na-tive vegetation that thrives here. The north of the island is drier than the south but is refreshed by condensation from the trade winds known locally as alicios.

The view from Suertes del Marques looking north towards Puerto de la Cruz

Due to its isolation from continental Europe and the sand-iness of the soils, most of the vines are ungrafted. Another unique feature of the DO is the training of the vines into braided cordons known as el cordon trenzado. This system made it easy to practice polyculture within a vineyard so a farmer could harvest grapes and vegetables from the same plot.

There is an amusing quote in John Radford’s The New Spain regarding the Valle de la Orotava DO, “All the wine the DO makes is swallowed up by the local market; thus, while there is pressure to maintain quality control and de-velopment, it seems unlikely that this will lead to export potential.” The quote is from the revised edition published in 2004 just two year before the founding of Suertes del Marqués by owner Jonatan Garcia Lima. In the few short years since founding the estate, Suertes has become one of the most talked about producers in the Canary Islands.

The cellar is surrounded by 9ha of vines divided into sev-eral plots. The elevation ranges from 250 to 800 meters with a variety of exposures, mostly northern and eastern. The grade of the site is very steep at anywhere between 17-38% so most of the work in the vineyard is manual. The oldest blocks are planted with 150 year-old vine Listan Negro, Listan Blanco and Pedro Ximénez – La Solana, El Barranco & Los Pasitos I. Two additional plots are over 80 years old with Listán Negro and Blanco in El Ciruelo and Listán Negro in El Esquilón. All these older blocks are trained in el cordon trenzado. The remaining blocks on the property were planted from 2000 to 2007 with Tintilla, Listán Negro, Baboso, Vijariego, Listán Blanco and Albil-lo. These newer vines are planted in double cordon for the most part with the exception of the Listán Negro and Baboso Negro in Las Terrazas which are head-pruned.

FAC T S a t a G L A N C E

Founded 2006

Propr ietor Jonatan Garcia Lima

Winemaker Luis Seabra

Size 25 ha

Elevat ion 350 – 800 meters above sea level

Soi ls Clay loam, sand, volcanic

Vine Age 10 – 180+

Variet ies Listán Negro, Tintilla, Baboso Negro, Listán Blanco, Pedro Ximénez, Vijariego Blanco, Gual, Marmajuelo

Farming Sustainable with organic practices

Harvest Manual

Cel lar Natural yeast fermentation, and aging in a variety of vessels ranging from concrete to tank to French oak

E U R O P E A N C E L L A R SE R I C S O L O M O N S E L E C T I O N S

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El Cordon Trenzado

S U E R T E S del M A R Q U E S V I N E Y A R D S

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12 Mercedes – Listán NegroPlanted in 2005 at 620–650 meters, 37.2% gradient, north-facing, prunned Double Royat

11 La Palapa – Listán Blanco & Albillo Planted in 2009 at 600–620 meters, 38.7% gradient, north-facing, prunned Double Royat

10 Las Terrazas – Listán Negro & Baboso NegroPlanted in 2005 at 580–620 meters, 35.7% gradient, northeast-facing, prunned Gobelet

9 Los Geranios – Listán NegroPlanted in 2005 at 560–600 meters, 37.8% gradient, north-facing, prunned Double Royat

8 Tintilla Alta – TintillaPlanted in 2000 at 540–560 meters, 32.4% gradient, north-facing, prunned Double Royat

7 El Esquilón – Listán Negro & Blanco80+ year old vines at 500–530 meters, 20.8% gradient, northeast- facing, prunned Cordón Trenzado

6 El Ciruelo – Listán Negro & Blanco90+ year old vines at 515–550 meters, 24% gradient, north-facing, prunned Cordón Trenzado

5 Tintilla Baja – TintillaPlanted in 2000 at 500–530 meters, 17.1% gradient, northeast-facing, prunned Double Royat

4 Los Pasitos I – Listán Negro & Blanco80–100+ year old vines at 500–520 meters, 20.5% gradient, north- facing, prunned Cordón Trenzado

3Los Pasitos II – Baboso & VijariegoPlanted in 2007 at 500–520 meters, 20.5% gradient, north-facing, prunned Simple Royat

2 La Solana – Listán Negro & Blanco, Pedro Ximénez80–110 year old vines at 430–500 meters, 24.6% gradient, east- facing, prunned Cordón Trenzado

1 El Barranco – Listán Negro & Blanco, Pedro Ximénez80–100+ year old vines at 430–500 meters, 24.6% gradient, west-facing, prunned Cordón Trenzado

El Esquilón

VARIETIESListán Negro & Tintilla

VINE AGE80+ years old (Listan Negro), Tintilla planted in 2000

SOURCEEl Esquilón, Tintilla Alta, Tintilla Baja

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, partial whole cluster, natural yeast fermenta-tion in concrete vats, manual pigeage

AGING14 months in 500L French oak demi-muids

Los Pasitos

VARIETIESBaboso Negro

VINE AGEVineyard planted 2007

SOURCELos Pasitos II

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, 20% whole cluster, natural yeast fermenta-tion in 600L tanks, 21 day maceration with manual pigeage

AGING14 months in a 500L and 228L French oak barrels

El Ciruelo

VARIETIESListán Negro & Listán Blanco

VINE AGE90+ years old

SOURCEEl Ciruelo

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, whole cluster natural yeast fermentation in concrete vats, gentle pigeage

AGING11 months in neutral 500L French oak demi-muids

La Solana

VARIETIESListán Negro,

VINE AGE80–150 years old

SOURCELa Solana

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, destemmed, prefermentation maceration in concrete vats, natural yeast fermentation in concrete, manual pigeage

AGING12 months in 500L French oak demi-muids

Vidonia

VARIETIESListán Blanco

VINE AGE100+ years old

SOURCEEl Barranco, La Solana & El Ciruelo

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, whole cluster pressed, natural yeast fermen-tation in neutral 500L French oak demi-muids

AGING10 months on the fine lees in neutral, 500L French oak demi-muids

7 Fuentes

VARIETIESListán Negro & Tintilla

VINE AGE10–180 years old

SOURCELas Terrazas, El Barranco, Los Geranios, El Refugio, San Antonio, and purchased fruit

FERMENTATIONHand harvested, natural yeast fermentation in stainless steel and concrete tanks, short fermentation, manual pigeage

AGING8 months in concrete and neutral 500L French oak demi-muids

S U E R T E S del M A R Q U E S W I N E S