Gianaclis and Omar Khayyam s 125th vintage Good wine is a necessity of life for me, Thomas Jefferson once wrote. His words resonate with wine lovers the world over, but especially perhaps with those in Egypt. Wine is not hard to find here, but "good wine can be more elusive. It is ironic given that Egypt was one of the earliest winemaking regions. Archaeological evidence records the process occurring here as early as 3000 BC, and the Pharoahs were renowned for their tendency to quaff. Some insisted on being buried with a bottle or two to make the journey to the underworld more palatable. As the ancient Egyptians mastered the arts of vine cultivation and grape crushing, producing delectable tipples in the process, other civilizations poisoned their palates - and their livers - with foul-tasting concoctions derived from fermented vegetables. Yet in the eons that have since passed, the winemaking balance of power has firmly shifted elsewhere; to Mediterranean Europe, South America, Australia and South Africa. Neighboring Lebanon is even known to produce some fine bottles. It is with this, and indeed Egypt s considerable wine-drinking market in mind, that Al Ahram Beverages have vowed to restore Egypt to its past winemaking greatness, and eventually to rival the producers of Europe and the rest. Though they can be confident it won t take another 5,000 years, Al Ahram admit there is some way to go. The launch this week of their 125th vintage anniversary Omar Khayyam red, white and rosé wines is something of a start. The wines are produced at the famous Gianaclis vineyard located off the Cairo-Alexandria road, and celebrate the wine s and the vineyard s birth in 1882. The founder, a Greek man named Nestor Gianaclis, believed that Egypt s soils, free of salts, resembled those of the French wine-producing region of Champagne. His subsequent product did not have the sparkle or the great taste of the famous French drink, but importantly, wine had returned to Egypt. And it went on to enjoy great popularity in the 1940s and 50s. Today the vineyard is managed by French wine connoisseur Sebastien Boudry, and from the tour and wine-tasting session he gave to myself and other Egyptian press, it looks to be all the better for his stewardship. The grapes are not just grown at Gianaclis, but are crushed, fermented, distilled, and bottled as well. That is to say the entire wine producing process from the grapevine to the shop shelf takes place at the vineyard. First, we were guided through Gianaclis extensive fields of grapevines, tasting the grapes and learning about the harvesting and fermentation processes. After the grapes are handpicked they go through a painstaking purification procedure where all leaves, stems and other particles are removed to ensure no unpleasant vegetal flavors make it into the resulting wine. They are then crushed and the juice is stored in vats, before being left to ferment over two stages for about four weeks. It is during this time that yeast is added to convert the grape s natural sugar into alcohol. When the world seems to shine like you ve had too much wine, as Dean Martin s timeless classic goes, it is for this reason. After our tour had moved through the vineyard s fermentation plant, it took us to the bottling center where around 2,000 bottles are produced every hour. In total, says Al Ahram s Marketing Manager Tamer Hosny, the equivalent of just under five and a half million bottles were sold last year. And the market here is growing. It is far from what it was about 30 years ago, says Hosny, but we have recorded an average of seven percent annual growth for several years now. But with few alternatives to Al Ahram s products in Egypt, this impressive figure is hardly a reliable gauge of the wine s quality. So what of the quality? The first drink poured by the good Mr. Boudry was the Omar Khayyam white. It was light and crisp, particularly refreshing after the preceding stroll. Although red wines sell more in general, in the warmer summer months white wine sales rise dramatically as unlike red, it is served cold. The red which followed was medium bodied, dry, with a soft flavor. It is a simple, easy to drink wine, but might be a touch too acidic for some palates. The same in fact could be said for the white, and both would ideally accompany food. Neither surpass Egypt s favorite wine Chateau de Reves in terms of taste - the grapes for which are imported from Lebanon - but at LE 35 a bottle they represent good value for money. Hosny estimates that in two years Gianaclis will be producing grapes on par with the best in the world. At that point it will be up to Al Ahram to produce wine befitting of its ingredients, and of Egypt s historic winemaking tradition.
