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Cypriot wine
The Cypriot wine industry ranks 50th in the world in terms of total production quantity (10,302 tonnes), and much higher on a per-capita basis. The wine industry is a significant contributor to the Cypriot economy through cultivation, production, employment, export and tourism.
Cyprus has been a vine-growing and wine-producing country for millennia and wine used to be a major factor of the Cypriot diet. There is archeological evidence that winemaking on the Mediterranean island may have existed as many as 6000 years ago. Most wine production remains based on a few varieties of local grapes such as Mavro and Xynisteri (see table below)
The most planted grape type is Mavro, it has dark color and literally translates as ‘black’ from Greek. Mavro is mainly used for producing the region's renowned wine Commandaria. The wine combines natural sweetness with high alcohol level and has similarities with a Passito or fortified wine. Commandaria can also be produced with the white grape variety Xynisteri.
The history of wine in Cyprus can be broken down into four distinct periods.
Exactly how far back wine production in Cyprus goes is unknown. Wine was being traded at least as early as 2300 BC, the date of a shipwreck (similar to the Kyrenia ship) carrying over 2,500 amphorae, discovered in 1999. Its origin and destination are unknown, but must have been along the trade route between Greece and Egypt.
More recently, two discoveries have put that date back by a few more years. The first was the discovery of a Bronze Age (2500–2000 BC) perfumery near the village of Pyrgos. Near this perfumery, an olive press, a winery, and copper smelting works were also discovered. Wine containers and even the seeds of grapes were unearthed.
The second discovery involved an intriguing sequence of events. Dr. Porphyrios Dikaios, a major figure in Cypriot archaeology and once curator of the Cyprus Museum, had carried out excavations on the outskirts of Erimi village between 1932 and 1935. During these excavations, several fragments of round flasks were unearthed (amongst other artefacts). These pottery fragments ended up in the stores of the Cyprus Museum still unwashed in wooden boxes. They were dated to the Chalcolithic period (between 3500BC-3000BC). In 2005, well after Dr Dikaios' death, the chemical signatures of 18 of these were examined by a team of Italian archaeologists led by Maria-Rosaria Belgiorno. Twelve of these showed traces of tartaric acid (a component of wine) proving that the 5,500-year-old vases were used for wine.
The history of wine on the island closely relates to its political and administrative history. During Lusignan rule, the island had close ties with the Crusader nations and especially the nobility of France. During this period, Commandaria wine won the Battle of the Wines, the first recorded wine tasting competition, which was staged by the French king Philip Augustus in the 13th century. The event was recorded in a poem by Henry d'Andeli in 1224.
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Cypriot wine
The Cypriot wine industry ranks 50th in the world in terms of total production quantity (10,302 tonnes), and much higher on a per-capita basis. The wine industry is a significant contributor to the Cypriot economy through cultivation, production, employment, export and tourism.
Cyprus has been a vine-growing and wine-producing country for millennia and wine used to be a major factor of the Cypriot diet. There is archeological evidence that winemaking on the Mediterranean island may have existed as many as 6000 years ago. Most wine production remains based on a few varieties of local grapes such as Mavro and Xynisteri (see table below)
The most planted grape type is Mavro, it has dark color and literally translates as ‘black’ from Greek. Mavro is mainly used for producing the region's renowned wine Commandaria. The wine combines natural sweetness with high alcohol level and has similarities with a Passito or fortified wine. Commandaria can also be produced with the white grape variety Xynisteri.
The history of wine in Cyprus can be broken down into four distinct periods.
Exactly how far back wine production in Cyprus goes is unknown. Wine was being traded at least as early as 2300 BC, the date of a shipwreck (similar to the Kyrenia ship) carrying over 2,500 amphorae, discovered in 1999. Its origin and destination are unknown, but must have been along the trade route between Greece and Egypt.
More recently, two discoveries have put that date back by a few more years. The first was the discovery of a Bronze Age (2500–2000 BC) perfumery near the village of Pyrgos. Near this perfumery, an olive press, a winery, and copper smelting works were also discovered. Wine containers and even the seeds of grapes were unearthed.
The second discovery involved an intriguing sequence of events. Dr. Porphyrios Dikaios, a major figure in Cypriot archaeology and once curator of the Cyprus Museum, had carried out excavations on the outskirts of Erimi village between 1932 and 1935. During these excavations, several fragments of round flasks were unearthed (amongst other artefacts). These pottery fragments ended up in the stores of the Cyprus Museum still unwashed in wooden boxes. They were dated to the Chalcolithic period (between 3500BC-3000BC). In 2005, well after Dr Dikaios' death, the chemical signatures of 18 of these were examined by a team of Italian archaeologists led by Maria-Rosaria Belgiorno. Twelve of these showed traces of tartaric acid (a component of wine) proving that the 5,500-year-old vases were used for wine.
The history of wine on the island closely relates to its political and administrative history. During Lusignan rule, the island had close ties with the Crusader nations and especially the nobility of France. During this period, Commandaria wine won the Battle of the Wines, the first recorded wine tasting competition, which was staged by the French king Philip Augustus in the 13th century. The event was recorded in a poem by Henry d'Andeli in 1224.