Cyprus; Going native

Cyprus’s high quality indigenous grapes offer the key to the island’s viticultural future. But the likes of Xynisteri and Maratheftiko are not yet recognised by the target markets, so winemakers are creating blends using well-known international grapes

Winemakers in Cyprus are united on how to develop the island’s viticultural future – and it involves drawing on the past. Producers large and small agree it is the country’s indigenous grapes that offer the most potential for quality wines with a point of difference, and it is a good product plus sense of provenance, as anyone in sales and marketing will stress, that is crucial to unlocking international sales.
However, despite evidence of winemaking in Cyprus as far back as 4,000 BC, the varieties traditionally used are new to the global market. Whether it is the mainstream Mavro or upmarket Maratheftiko, consumer recognition, even among wine enthusiasts, is notably lacking.
There is of course a solution, and one increasing numbers are using. This is to blend the local with the international – a technique employed worldwide when the indigenous ingredients are unknown to the target audience. In Cyprus’s case, there is already a history, albeit relatively recent, of planting international varieties such as Chardonnay and Cabernet Sauvignon. Add to these, new arrivals Shiraz and Sauvignon Blanc, and Cyprus has a rich range of fashionable grapes to blend with its most prized native varietals, providing a hook on which to catch a curious consumer.
In whites, Cyprus benefits from the widely planted Xynisteri grape, producer of appealing, citrus fruit wines with medium body. The results are best drunk young and can be prone to low acidity, although this can be corrected or naturally boosted by planting at high altitudes. Mountain viticulture is something Cyprus offers in abundance with some of the highest vineyards in Europe, peaking at 1,480m. At over 800-900m, Xynisteri achieves not only higher acidity but also an attractive mineral edge, due to the cooler temperatures, especially at night.

Nevertheless, for some, the best whites from Cyprus, both in terms of taste and on-shelf consumer appeal, are those where an international grape has been added to the mix.
Some have opted for Riesling, and others, such as Tsiakkas, Sauvignon Blanc, while Fikardos and Aes Ambelis wineries are producing pleasing results with a 15% peppering of Semillon. George Tripatsas, managing director at the latter producer, who buys his Xynisteri from Cyprus’s highest vineyards at Kyperounda, says, “We tried Xynisteri with Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc, but found our best results with Semillon.”
It’s also worth noting that certain producers, such as Krelan Winery (or Kyperounda with its Petritis), are making Xynisteri with partial barrel maturation, while other native grapes Promara and Spourtiko are experiencing something of a revival.
In reds, Cyprus’s most planted native variety, Mavro, is easy to grow; it is used in Commandaria, and can produce deeply coloured rosé, while some suggest it could make a light Beaujolais-like red by employing carbonic maceration.
However, Cyprus is pinning hopes on the potential of indigenous grape Maratheftiko. Producer of wines with deep colour, an attractive floral scent and a range of styles from light and fruity to rich and extracted, plantings are slowly increasing. The grape does suffer from one setback, however – it is one of the few grapes that is non-hermaphroditic, making pollination troublesome, and hence it is prone to uneven flowering and poor fruit set. Different producers present varying solutions, some planting mixed vineyards to ensure pollination occurs evenly. All are agreed, however, that the best Maratheftiko-based wines use grapes grown at higher altitudes. For example, according to Nicos Nicolaides from Domaine Nicolaides, “The best area for Maratheftiko is Omodos, because here it is planted above 900m.”

He and others also suggest this variety could do well in blends with international grapes such as Cabernet Sauvignon, as well as Merlot, or even Syrah. Perhaps there is the potential to promote a Cyprus blend similar to South Africa’s Cape Blend. The latter country has made a name for its unique mix of native Pinotage and Bordeaux grapes.
Overall, many compare the viticultural conditions in Cyprus to those in southern Rhône, in particular the likes of Chateauneuf du Pape and Tavel, which supports the success Cyprus is having with Syrah, Mouvèdre and rosés made with Grenache. In particular, Syrah, or Shiraz as producers prefer to call and label it in Cyprus, is provoking much interest, and University of California Davis-trained Cypriot winemaker Sophocles Vlassides says that if Cyprus did create an iconic wine, it would be a Shiraz blend – possibly with Maratheftiko. “Everything that does well in the Rhône does well in Cyprus,” he says, “and at the moment we are experimenting with red varieties but the next step will be with white varieties from the Rhône and the top Greek grapes.”
Also slowly appearing is the practice of matching particular varieties with certain terroirs and experimenting with varying vineyard management techniques. Following this will be clonal selection which should ensure further progress.
In the meantime, it appears Cyprus is improving the wines made with its native grapes, and producing appealing blends with the help of better-understood international varietals.

db ©  May 2008