Beyond beaches and nightlife, Ibiza has a Mediterranean wine heritage with countless small plots of ungrafted Monastrell vines located mostly on sandy soils across the island.
Ibizkus is particularly committed to this wine heritage. It was launched in late 2006 by a French investor, who bought an existing winery called Vins de Tanis Mediterranis. With new shareholders in the company, Galician winemaker David Lorenzo looks after the wines and French oenologist Dominique Roujou works as a consultant there since the 2015 vintage.
Given the sky-high real estate prices in Ibiza, Ibizkus doesn’t own any vineyards or a cellar but it controls 33 hectares, 85% of which are planted with head-pruned wines. Many of them are small plots of ungrafted Monastrell vines found primarily in the village of Sant Josep but also across the island. They are not pre-phylloxera, but 40- to 70-year-old vines that were planted directly on the soil, without using rootstocks. The ICVV (Institute of Grapevine and Wine Sciences) in La Rioja is currently studying their DNA as they could be a highly particular Monastrell clon -perhaps even a different grape variety. What’s certain is that these late ripening, drought-resistant vines have fully adapted to the island’s climate and soils.
As expected from an island focused on leisure, Ibizkus rosé is their flagship wine —40,000 litres of rosé were produced in 2017 compared to 3,000 litres of red wine. This is a directly-pressed wine made from Monastrell (85%) and small amounts of Cabernet, Syrah and Tempranillo that retails at €18.5. The elegant, silk-screen printed bottle is widely available in the island. In fact, Ibiza accounts for 60% of Ibizkus sales; Mallorca gets 10% and the rest is exported, mainly to northern Europe and Canada.
Other Ibizkus wines include a Mediterranean-style white partially aged in barrel and made mostly from Macabeo and Malvasia (although some Parellada is also blended in to dilute the alcohol); a red with ripe fruit and scrubland notes but with more freshness than other red Monastrell wines from southeastern Spain. Surprisingly, colour and concentration vary significantly between vintages. The latest release is Ibizkus Syrah (€26), showing striking freshness, firm tannins and good potential.
Totem is the brand for their premium wines, featuring a couple of bottlings made in tiny quantities. Grapes for the 2017 rosé (808 bottles, €37) are sourced from a plot in San Lorenzo that benefits from the proximity of a water stream. It spends eight months in French oak barrels and displays a fragrant, delicate nose and a notable finish. The red version (588 bottles in the 2016 vintage) comes from two single plots and shows a distinctive, velvety texture and enveloping tannins.
All wines are sold under the VT Eivissa seal.