Chances are, you haven’t tried a Maltese wine, and that’s because the small Mediterranean island’s products rarely make their way to the mainland. But with an influx of capital from foreign investors in notable wine making regions like Tuscany and France, the nation is seeing a surge in the production of its native grapes, gellewza and girgentina.
According to The New York Times, Maltese wines date back to pre-Egyptian times, but over the years, the Maltese fell into habit of drinking exclusively imports. For a time, the only wines vinified on Maltese soil depended on grape juice shipped in from Sicily. Then, in the mid-1990s, the government’s attitude began to change, encouraging local wineries to harvest the island’s grapes. After almost a decade of vine maturation and an uphill battle of getting citizens to drink locally, Maltese wines are finally gaining a foothold on the domestic market.
Now if only you could get your hands on a bottle. [The New York Times] [Photo: Flickr/arhythmt]