|
Maratheftiko, the big idea…
Last Sunday, I wrote my view on the quality level of the red wines the island produces. I am convinced that the local red are inferior in quality compared with the white or rosé vinified on the island. Let us not repeat the same: harsh tannins, excessive acidity, poor fruit and so on.
One of the main reasons that contribute to the rustic flavour profile of Cypriot red wines is, if not the only one, the lack of quality vine grapes. When I talk about ‘quality vine grapes’ I mainly mean grapes well adjusted to the soil and climatic conditions of the island. The quality of grapes in all parts of the world is linked with the level of adaptability of vines to the local terrain and climatic conditions. No matter how good quality the Pinot Noir is, it can hardly yield in unsuitable climates like ours. While in Burgundy, it gives great fruit that produces mythical wines of incredible taste, in a dry and hot environment it refuses to give even the essentials.
If we look at the varietal map of the country searching for vine grapes with the best adaptability, we will realize that the native varieties come first. I do not think that there are still any doubts about the non-adaptability of many foreign vine grapes with the exception of Syrah, Grenache, Mourvèdre and possibly one or two other.
Given that many international varieties fail to adjust to Cyprus’ climate and that the local Mavro fails to produce any worthy wine, the Maratheftiko is of huge significance, the only native grape variety that can produce quality red wines.
This, of course, would have been possible on the presumption that we had solved the serious vinicultural problem the variety presents. I am talking about the flower shedding, the falling of most of its blossoms before their pollination, leading to deficient clusters with very few rails in bloom scattered irregularly along the vines, a problem that troubles the variety for decades now. From what we know so far, Maratheftiko is one of the very few varieties around the world that is non-hermaphroditic and as a result, it cannot be self-fertilized. According to the famous professor of viniculture Mr Gallet, who has studied the variety, its buds are physiologically female. Therefore, it cannot be self-fertilized without the contribution of a pollinator, another variety that blossoms together during the same period.
According to KEO, Maratheftiko blossoms together with Spourtiko, a museum item native variety. Consequently, planting these two varieties in mix vineyards would partly resolve the problem of flower shedding. However, this is just a temporary and ineffective measure, no matter how favourite to the island this method is.The vinicultural problem of the sole worthy red inborn variety of the country would permanently solve only one measure, the systematic and persistent vinicultural research focusing on the choice of a clone that is resistant to the falling of the buds. One that could multiply, create, thus, motherly plantations that would lead to an extensive vineyard throughout the island, capable to produce excellent grapes.
Something like this, though, requires efforts of many years, which not only have they long delayed, but they do not fit to the culture of the country that is summed up in one saying, ‘Everyone is looking for quick and easy money’.
04/10/2009
|
