Puro Rofe
There are changes at Puro Rofe: Carmelo Peña is no longer the winemaker, whose role has been taken over by Juan Daniel Ramírez from Titerok-Akaet, and part of the team has also changed. But they continue improving and are the benchmark for terroir-driven wines from Lanzarote. Visiting the different zones of the islands, I got a much better understanding of their wines.
2020 was a catastrophic vintage when it comes to yields in Lanzarote in particular and all the islands in general, without a drop of water between January to October. Lanzarote harvested 1.3 million kilos, less than half of the nearly three million kilos they harvested in 2019 (and four million in 2018). They usually receive almost two million tourists, and during the pandemic they didn't get any. Most of the sales are direct to consumers from the cellar door or in local stores, so it all stopped. It was a very challenging harvest, but they are still on their way up. They have moved to a larger location in the village of Femés; they have increased their vineyards in La Geria to three hectares, all traditional holes on black volcanic ash; they rent vineyards and buy grapes from different villages; and in 2020, they have two new whites. The wines have more concentration and structure, perhaps a little less acidity but still quite fresh and with the characteristic salinity. Luis Gutierrez, ROBERT PARKER
2020 was a catastrophic vintage when it comes to yields in Lanzarote in particular and all the islands in general, without a drop of water between January to October. Lanzarote harvested 1.3 million kilos, less than half of the nearly three million kilos they harvested in 2019 (and four million in 2018). They usually receive almost two million tourists, and during the pandemic they didn't get any. Most of the sales are direct to consumers from the cellar door or in local stores, so it all stopped. It was a very challenging harvest, but they are still on their way up. They have moved to a larger location in the village of Femés; they have increased their vineyards in La Geria to three hectares, all traditional holes on black volcanic ash; they rent vineyards and buy grapes from different villages; and in 2020, they have two new whites. The wines have more concentration and structure, perhaps a little less acidity but still quite fresh and with the characteristic salinity. Luis Gutierrez, ROBERT PARKER