Most of the wines in Lebanon come from the Bekaa Valley - a high plain located between two mountain ranges at an altitude of 800 m. This valley is renowned for its rich soils, climate and vines. Conditions there are ideal for vines as its is endowed by year round sunshine, high altitude and no summer rainfalls, thus minimising the need for early harvests with little risk of disease.
Bacchus Temple
From the dawn of time the Phoenicians traded with Mesopotamia and Egypt and colonised the Mediterranean by establishing cities in all of Cyprus, Rhodes, Crete, Malta, Sicily, Sardinia, Marseilles, Cadiz and Carthage to the extent that the continent was named Europe after Europa, the daughter of the King of Tyre.
In doing that, Europe knew the vitis vinifera - the mother of noble vines - through the Phoenicians, as the origins of this plant was confirmed to be from the near East. Grape presses were found in the ruins of Tyre indicating the extensive scale of production.(Cana is about 10 miles away from Tyre in The South Of Lebanon).
But most of the wines in Lebanon came from the Bekaa Valley, a high plain located between two mountain ranges at an altitude of 800 m. This valley was renowned for its rich soils, climate and vines.
Conditions there remain ideal for vines as its is endowed by year round sunshine, high altitude and no summer rainfalls, thus minimising the need for early harvests with little risk of disease.
Many wine advisors recognise the region's potential and experts are invited by wine producers to search for the most suitable soils for growing vines. Some have close cooperation with producers from St.Emilion and Chateauneuf-du-Pape. Chateau Massaya, for example, is now part owned by Cheval Blanc and Angelus. Lebanon has become famous for quality due to a combination of terroir (climate/soil) and cepage (grape assembly)
In Lebanon vine growers have a substantial variety of noble grapes to select from namely - Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Grenache, Mourvedre, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Cabernet Franc, Cinsault, Petit Verdot, Gamay and Tempranillo.
Lebanese wine producers like Ksara, Kefraya and Chateau Musar have survived the years of war and carry on producing in the same tradition that made their name and fame for quality. The latter are still using old wine making methods and even use the Merwah and Obaidah (believed to be the ancestor of Chardonnay) grapes when everyone else is using noble varieties.
The leaders of single varietal wines are Domaine Wardy of Lebanon who have influenced the market in Lebanon , traditionally known to be a multi varietal wine country.
Domaine Wardy
Domaine Wardy have brought sophistication and high-tech, using state of the art fermentation in stainless steel, temperature control, filtration and bottling systems - all purchased from France yet using French Oak casks for storage between 14 and 18 months and complying with the latest production technology. Lebanon enforces OIV standards but Domaine Wardy applies French AOC (Appelation d'Origine Controlee) to all its wines.
