Lebanon hails unique 2010 vintage

A freak heatwave this summer has left Lebanon’s winemakers promising not only a vintage of unprecedented character, but also great quality.

Many wineries reported harvest dates a month or more earlier than usual and as temperatures in the Bekaa Valley hit the high 40s, vines shut down to create an unusual combination of both high sugar and high acidity.

Elie Maamari, export manager for Château Ksara, explained: “The heat stopped photosynthesis so we ended up with a very low yield, concentrated sugars and good acidity.” As a result of this, Lebanon’s winemakers remain largely unconcerned about the problems of longevity and freshness which plagued France’s heatwave-hit 2003 vintage.

Tarek Sakr, winemaker at Château Musar described 2010 as “unique”, while Habib Karam, owner of Karam Winery further south in Jezzine, admitted that it was also a “very difficult” vintage.

He explained: “Most of the grapes except those at high altitude dried out.” As Sakr confirmed a similar situation in the Musar vineyards, he highlighted that smaller-berry grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon proved more vulnerable than the better-adapted Carignan and Cinsault.

The high altitude selected by many producers to compensate for Lebanon’s lack of latitude also played its part this year in preserving freshness and extending the growing season. Ixsir, one of several new wineries to emerge in the last decade, has vineyards planted as high as 1,700 metres. As a result, general manager Hady Kahale finished his harvest at the very end of September, “one month later than the rest of Lebanon.”

Domaine des Tourelles in Chtaura offered a more common picture of the anomalous vintage, with winemaker Faouzi Issa observing: “Last year we harvested on 10 September; this year it was 3 August.”

The hot weather also led to low yields as a prominent feature of Lebanon’s 2010 vintage. With his added factors of high altitude and poor soil, Kahale wryly suggested that yields were so low, “I’d be better off making Sauternes.” As a result, while he anticipates a future production of around 500,000 bottles, this year will be closer to 200,000.

Michel de Bustros, chairman of major player Château Kefraya, corroborated this picture, saying: We usually produce two million bottles per year; we’re down drastically this year to 1.3m.”

Despite this volume shortfall, Joe-Assaad Said Touma, winemaker at Clos St Thomas, remained upbeat about the trade-off, maintaining: “We had low yields, but it will be better quality than 2009”

While the real assessment of this vintage will not be possible until the top reds are released in three years time or more, concerns that this heatwave may not be a one-off are accelerating the pace at which Lebanon’s producers are exploring new terroirs beyond their traditional Bekaa heartland.

“After the heatwave we are looking at other places”, confirmed Sakr, although for the moment he remains tight-lipped as to the precise locations being considered.

Setting this within a wider context for Musar’s future – and perhaps that of Lebanon as a whole, Sakr observed: “The Bekaa is still the best place to make wine, but why not look elsewhere too?”

Gabriel Savage, 07.10.2010