If wine made from vines grown on black, volcanic soil is your bag, then good news, we have the designer gear for you. No, before you ask, we're not talking about trendy Mount Etna (although we certainly could do!), but instead the island of Lanzarote, Spain.
Puro Rofe was founded by Rayco Fernandez and Silvia Viot in 2017. Utilising the islands' hallmark raw materials of unique viticulture, ancient vines and stark beauty, their vision was to create wines that reflect the unique and surreal landscapes of the island.
Situated as the easternmost of the Canary Islands, just 100km from Africa, this provides some challenging conditions to grow vines. Undeterred, Puro Rofe are committed to their core principles of producing terroir-driven, artisanal wines from vineyards that practice sustainable dry farming methods. The majority of the vines - aged between 60 to 100 plus years old - are grown in the traditional 'rofes' of Lanzarote, which are holes carved in the island's volcanic ash (for you Sicilian wino fans, think of Pantelleria). These rofes provide the plants with protection from strong winds while allowing the vines to delve deeper in search of scarce water and nutrients.
The winemaking process is straightforward. Grapes are processed in a traditional vertical press, seeing gentle whole-cluster pressing, and are spontaneously fermented with indigenous yeasts. The wines are then unfiltered and unfined. Occasional sulphur is used, but only in lesser vintages and exclusively at bottling. Ageing takes place in a combination of stainless steel and french oak.
From initial small harvests of Malvasia Volcânica and Diego grapes (the most prized white varieties), the winery has since expanded its range of wines and sources grapes from a few local growers. Yields are minimal, in light of the growing conditions, but much like how the old vines have adapted to the landscape, so too have its winemakers. The wines of Puro Rofe are out of this world, compensating against the tough conditions with power and complexity. This is box office stuff right here. Volcanic ash never tasted so good!
