There are very few centenary wineries that have survived in the region of Mount Lentiscal, those who still have a press room with a screw press (including a beam, a screw and a big stone); a trough to wash your feet before stomping the grapes in the press room; and funnels or hoppers to pour and strain the wine into the barrels. One of them is from Santiago Robaina, Marcelo, in Plaza Perdida, which still preserves the atmosphere of those old wineries thanks to the previous and a few centuries old press room, which his grandfather bought around 1920. That does not mean that the wines produced here nowadays are related to the outdated technology, but the architectonic and industrial wine patrimony is a gift to our eyes.

He keeps cultivating the traditional varieties from the area, characterized by a landscape of volcanic ash with big differences in temperature between day and night

Despite all this, he brags about some things related to wine culture and tradition in Mount Lentiscal. For a start, he keeps cultivating the traditional varieties from the area, characterized by a landscape of volcanic ash with big differences in temperature between day and night.

“It is our philosophy because the good raw material that the place and its varieties give off is the success of Plaza Perdida as well as of the country house La Vica” the oenologist Luis Molina explains about the friendly partnership of the vintner and the technician in order to produce the wines from one (Plaza Perdida) and the other (country house La Vica) in the same winery, while supporting each other mutually as far as infrastructure and qualified consulting are concerned.

Traditional peculiarities
In addition, the new barrels are cleaned traditionally, washing them with hot water that is boiled with orange leaf buds and fennel. “It is an old, lifelong tradition”, assures Robaina.

The new barrels are cleaned traditionally, washing them with hot water that is boiled with orange leaf buds and fennel

“That is how we inflated the wood of the barrels to not have any losses, given that they were new and I was worried that they would give off some kind of aroma to the wine, especially because they were burnt inside, from the procedure of bending the staves”, explains Molina. The result is a very pleasant smell throughout the entire winery.

Another traditional peculiarity is that they clarify the wine with egg whites. Every 100 liters, one stiff egg white with a little salt is blended into the wine. “The wine is pumped to mix it and, since the egg white is sticky, the particles that the wine contains drop to the bottom within five to ten days, depending on the capacity of the container. Afterwards, the wine is pumped out and the interior is illuminated with a spotlight from the manhole and when the egg white is getting closer, which you notice because the color turns bluish, the pump is stopped”, describes the vintner. “The wine remains clean and what remains at the bottom is taken out and used for compost”, says the oenologist.

■ Santiago Robaina León Carretera Los Hoyos 271, 35017 Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Islas Canarias (España) Hhone number: (34) 928 355 871 Emails: marcelo271@yahoo.es; vidlavica@hotmail.com Homepage: www.bodegasplazaperdida.com ● Capacity: 40.000 liters. ● Average production: 30.000 bottles/year. ♠ Open to the public by appointment.