Cyprus I: Wine

After Morocco it was time to head to the other end of the Mediterranean- the island of Cyprus. My friend Vicky (from such adventures including Carnival in Cadiz and her last visit to Granada) is stationed in the southwest of the island, the Akrotiri peninsula, and a visit was long overdue. Over three weeks the two of us explored the whole island and discovered tons of interesting things.
Instead of recounting our travels chronologically, I’ve decided to separately focus on the things that really shaped my Cypriot experience.

Historically

Cyprus is archeologically one of the sites of the oldest known wine-makers and wine consumers with discoveries of winemaking evidence in Erimi village from at least 3500BC (five and half thousand years ago), as well as grape seeds in two wine vessels excavated in Pyrgos from more than 5000 years ago. These finds clearly give Cypriots the title of oldest wine-o’s of the Mediterranean.

The first literary reference to Cypriot wine is in the Bible. In Solomon's "Song of Songs" Chapter 1, Verse 14 "My beloved in unto me as a cluster of Cyprus in the vineyards of Engadi".
King Richard the Lionheart captured the island in 1191 and liked the wines, In the same year he sold the island to the Knights Templar, who set up their headquarters or Grand Commanderia in the district where ever since the best known Cyprus wine Commaderia has come from ever since.

Mythology

The Cypriot wines were praised by Dionysos (Greek God of Wine); worshippers of Aphrodite celebrated with 'Cyprus Nama" allegedly the oldest wine known in history. The ancient House of Dionysus in Pafos is currently being renovated to show the elaborate and ornate mosaic floors. One of these floors portrays the myth of the creation of wine. The story goes that Dionysos paid a visit to the house of a horticulturist, Ikarios. He left with this man a vine-plant, telling him that by following the instructions he would be able to extract from the plant an unusual drink. Ikarios planted the vine, harvested the grapes, fermented the liquid exactly as he had been told to. He then invited his neighbours over to taste the new wine. The fragrance of the drink amazed them, and before long they were singing its praises. Then suddenly the drinkers began to collapse, falling over in drunken stupor. Those left standing accused Ikarios of poisoning them, and they beat him to death and threw his mutilated body into a well. His daughter hanged herself. This, according to myth, was the first manifestation of Dionysos, benefactor of mankind, giver of good things.  (http://dionysia.org/greek/dionysos/thompson/dionysos.html)

Today

The Cypriot wine industry ranks 37th in the world in terms of total production quantity (37,500 tonnes) and much higher on a per capita basis (wikipedia). Internationally, it is best known for Commandaria wine (a delicious sweet wine, known as ‘The Wine of Kings’).

Mavro grapes

The grapes grown here have been carried throughout the world to become cultivated on every continent. The most used locally are Mavro and Xynisteri, Other grapes cultivated on Cyprus include:
Malvasia, Sauvion Blanc, Riesling, Semillon, Chardonay, Muscat, Ofthalmo, Carignan Noir, Mataro, Malaga, Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Palomino, Shiraz, Alicante Bouschet, Grenache Noir, Merlot, Oeillade, Lefkada and Maratheftiko (the most ancient variety, currently enjoying a revival.)

Besides the Commandaria/Koumandaria, another local treat we found was the fiery Zivania ‘The Rural Spirit’. This is an incredibly high-alcohol (max 52%), clear spirit that is uniquely made entirely out of grape residue (the leftovers). (If you’d like the details on exactly how this procedure goes, let me know). Anyway, this is a BURNING liquor that many locals use as window cleaners, as well as an after-dinner shot. Honestly it was a little strong for my preferences, although some of the variations we tried were better than others.

Another Cypriot wine is Kokinelli, rivaling the Zivania in strength and most overwhelming when ordered at any of the local kebab shops or restaurants. Rumor has it that when tested it contained over thirty known poisons!!

Vicky and my Cypriot wine experience was fairly thorough. Day one found us at the National Wine Museum in Kolossi, near Akrotiri. Here we saw some of the “Amphora”- double handled terra cotta jars (Pithari in greek), as well as one of the oldest known giant jug things (Pitharia) We also watched a stellar video montage of Cypriot wine through history accompanied by music composed by the museum’s very own owner….

The labeler at one of our favorite
visited wineries

In addition to some independent study over the next few weeks we also spent a day driving through the Troodos region whose hills and mountains are well-known for their copious amounts of wine trails (although some are almost impossible to locate and follow). A few of the wineries we did find were closed, but the ones that weren’t were run by incredibly friendly Cypriots who were more than happy to proudly share their finest work and family stories with us. One showed us some of his hundred year old vines, emphasizing that the hills of Cyprus have never been exposed to some of the diseases and pests that ruin vineyards in other parts of the world. The lack of variation in climate also ensures little change among the vintages- a good wine in 2000 will almost definitely taste the same in 2007. During these winery visits we also discovered Kiofteria- a sweet, tan-colored, chewy treat made from grapes that is used for a healthy energy boost.

Me at Troodos, Mt Olympus

It was also during our Troodos travels that we visited the snowy top of Mount Olympus and the darling (not snowy) town of Omodos, home of an ancient wine-presses.

We also encountered a very exciting 800 year old olive tree

and were locked into a little old man’s historical home.











Fun Fact:
The Cypriots used to (and still do) hollow out gourds to use as scoops for wine out of the jars/barrels! Some we saw were very extravagantly decorated, but most were unadorned with sloppy holes cut.


Here's some more information, if you're interested:
http://www.cypruswinemuseum.com/eng/tour/

http://www.cypruswineries.org/index.php?id=2