Where Atlantic Ocean influences meet wild volcanic soils, Tenerife is a fascinating area in terms of terroir. What is also so exciting about Tenerife, are the lesser-known native grape varieties, most of which cannot be found anywhere else in the world.

Located in the Valle de la Orotava, Northern Tenerife, lies a very small, family run winery called Vinos Atlante. Jesús Gonzalez de Chávez and his family have farmed in Valle de la Orotava for generations, but in the past only selling their fruit on to local cooperatives, whilst reserving a small amount for personal consumption and experimental purposes. In 2013 however, confident in the quality they were achieving, Jesús made the decision to set up Vinos Atlante; an artisan project, making quality-orientated, small batch wines, from a special selection of their plots, planted with local grape varieties.

Working 100% organically, though not certified, no herbicides or insecticides are used in their production and everything is done by hand - mostly by Jesús himself! Atlante’s 3 hectares of vineyards are as close as just 4km from the sea and 15km from the Mount Teide volcano. The vines are trained using a traditional technique unique to the local area, called Cordon Trenzado, which translates to “braided cord”, a multiple cordon method where the vines grow horizontally, braided together in sets of 6 to 8. The soils are volcanic, and rich in clay, with great drainage, which encourages the roots to grow deep in search of water. Northerly winds provide cloud coverage in the warmest months of the summer, allowing the vines to ripen slowly and consistently, whilst closer to harvest, bright sun and mild temperatures provide perfect conditions for reaching optimal maturity.

In the winery they also work with minimal intervention, using native yeasts, allowing the wines to ferment spontaneously and bottling without filtration. Currently producing just 6000 bottles per year, from native varieties; Albillo Criollo, Listan Blanco and Listan Negro. Atlante produce seriously expressive wines, of authenticity, delicacy, rusticity, and personality in abundance, which truly express this unique terroir. We are proud to welcome Vinos Atlante to our portfolio, our first ever winery from Tenerife.

“We are a small winery. We do everything by hand. And we like it this way.” Jesús Gonzalez de Chávez