On Sunday, October 26, the second edition of the Canarias Wine Challenge, organized biannually by La Cava de Piñero, took place at the Adán Martín Auditorium in Santa Cruz de Tenerife. It was a magnificent and unmissable event that culminated the following day with a wine and music festival.
Three pairs from the team (Terroir a Ciegas) went with the intention of enjoying Tenerife in its broadest sense: landscape, villages, climate, gastronomy, viticulture, and, of course, the Canarias Wine Challenge. Felipe Pardo and I had the goal of repeating last year’s victory. It was not possible. This time we were not successful, but our friends Josep Gallego and Daniel Monsonís did make it to the grand final, although luck eluded them and they did not make it onto the podium. It was another experience that we certainly hope to repeat.
The wines in the initial phase were as follows:
+ Domaine Guiberteau. Saumur 2023
+ Marisa Cuomo. Bianco 2023
+ Eulogio Pomares. Carralcoba blanco 2023
+ Bodega Tamerán. Lomo de los Ingleses 2023
+ Álvaro Palacios. Finca Dofí 2007
+ Bodegas Paco García. El Mirón del Humilladero 2021
The selection was difficult for everyone. Getting one wine right would put you in the final. The three whites made us extremely dizzy. The Listán Negro from Tamerán was very good, but we couldn’t detect the Canary Islands. The Finca Dofí was tremendous, a great wine. We considered Paco García’s Garnacha, but as we had already chosen one (Tamerán), we didn’t dare to repeat the variety.
The final stage was not easy either, in this case because, according to the finalists, some of the wines had evolved more than expected, which made it difficult to see clearly what they were. These were the wines in the final stage:
+ L’O de L’Origan
+ Viña Mein. Emilio Rojo. Viña Mein 2021
+ Kistler Vinayards. Les Noisetiers 2021
+ Quinta de Muralla. Alanda 2018
+ Zuccardi. Piedra Infinita 2019
+ Chateau Haut Brion 1999
The winning pair was Daniel López and Javier Bueno, who also pocketed a prize of €5,000. In second place were Juan Francisco Fariña Pérez and Aday Benítes Mendoza, who won €1,500. And in third place were Joan Casajuana Cunill and Toto Regalado García, with a prize of €500.
We still have many more competitions, tastings, and good times ahead of us, but we will definitely return to the Canarias Wine Challenge at La Cava de Piñero if we have the opportunity. This event was perfectly organized by Raquel and Raúl Piñero, whom we can only thank for regularly carrying out an initiative like this.