Spain's Canary Islands, just off the coast of West Africa, known for its year-round warm weather, beaches and volcanic landscape, is just perfect for a wine adventure. The Canary Islands wines first caught my attention during a March 2025 cruise stop. My first visit to the Canary Islands was to Tenerife, and so returning February 2026 to Canary Islands I was excited to, not only to return to Tenerife, but also visit Lanzarote.
While both islands produce wine grown in volcanic soil, Lanzarote's vineyard landscape is quite a contrast to Tenerife's vineyard landscape.
The Canary Islands of Tenerife and Lanzarote are significantly different in their landscapes and water retention capacity. The islands closer to the Sahara Desert, such as Lanzarote, are the most arid, the flattest, and have the least amount of groundwater, along with the highest exposure to solar radiation. In contrast, the more western islands, such as Tenerife, experience greater cloud cover due to its higher altitudes. Tenerife is home to Mount Teide volcano (3715 m), which contributes to the formation of numerous mesoclimates, significant temperature variations, and more pronounced seasonality.
Indeed given the variation of growing conditions within the Canary Islands you can see why its volcanic wines have gotten attention. Based on my research I discovered that there are around 80 grape varieties grown on the islands, with 24 of them being local varieties, like Listán Negro and Listán Blanco. Brian McClintic, Master Sommelier writing about Canary Island wines for Wine Folly noted:
The highest elevation vineyards in Europe reside on a small island. The perimeter of this island houses small, sea level beach towns. In the middle of the island lives a 12,200 foot volcano. It takes an hour to drive from one end to the other, but from village to village, it seems as though you’ve gone to the moon and back. Jungles, deserts, tropical beaches, and mountains…it’s like every ecosystem became an expat and moved here. By rule, Spanish. By influence, Portuguese. By geography, a stone’s throw from Africa. Brian McClintic, Master Sommelier
Vignette from our Tenerife Wine Adventure
My second visit to Tenerife took us to Bodegas Monje. When we arrived in Santa Cruz off we went in taxi from the cruise port. We had the most delightful visit at Bodegas Monte near Tacotonte. Most Tenerife wineries are located in the north of the island, around Tacoronte, La Orotava, and Icod de los Vinos.
The Bodegas Monje wines produced from the traditional grape varieties grown there are influenced by the volcanic terroir where they grow. These volcanic wines are gaining attention for their uniqueness. Bodegas Monje produces mostly red wines. Their wines have been described as having attractive colors, mineral and fruity aromas, fresh, full, full of life. In short, they showcase their sense of place. We enjoyed being introduced to Bodegas Monje wines, which are produced from grape varieties native to the region.
I have read that their distinctive wines pair beautifully with the rich gastronomy of the Canary Islands. During our tasting the four wines were paired with four different local cheeses.
Later, when we toured the bottling area there was a display of the wines produced by Bodegas Monje.
Bodegas Monje Wines © Spaswinefood
Vignette from our Lanzarote Wine Adventure
Lanzarote's main wine-making areas are La Geria, Masdache and Tinajo. The five main grape varieties grown on the island (whites: Malvasía Volcanica, Listan Blanco, Diego, and Moscatel de Alejandria, and red: Listan Negro). Since phylloxera never arrived on Lanzarote, the vines are all ungrafted. Given our limited time in port we signed up for a tour on Lanzarote's Wine Trail. The tour took us from the cruise port to La Geria. Our Lanzarote tour included two winery stops. Here we would visit vineyards amongst the volcanoes. It is not surprising that these volcanic wines are gaining attention for their uniqueness. I can see why volcanic wines have become a hot topic.
Lanzarote Vineyards
Lanzarote Wineries
We made two winery stops. Bodega La Geria, a wine shop and tasting room, was our first stop.
Bodega La Geria © Spaswinefood
Our first winery stop was a busy place. We were quickly given two wines to try. Basically the only description I heard was dry and sweet.
My first impression of local wines was not great. This was definitely influenced by the atmosphere where samples were quickly dispensed to visitors arriving on large buses. I did observe that Bodega La Geria has full range of wines for purchase. I am sure that some tours provide a better wine tasting experience than one we took. I would highly recommend booking a small private tour.
Bodegas Rubicón, the second winery stop, was just across the street.
Here we were introduced to five different Bodegas Rubicón wines.
Bodegas Rubicón has an impressive history. In 1979 Don Germán López Figueras bought the Cortijo de La Geria, from the Fajardo family. He dedicated himself to his passion: winemaking. For decades, the winery has been dedicated to the artisanal production of wine.
Touring the winery we discovered first hand some of its history. We were free to tour the winery on our own.
After the tasting we bought some additional wines to taste. We enjoyed these wines outside while taking in the views.
Exploring volcanic wines from the Canary Islands has reminded me that there has been significant exploration of Volcanic Wines in the literature.
"Volcanic Wines" is a Hot Topic
Volcanic Wines has become a hot topic in wine magazine articles, such as Wine Enthusiast's Kevin O'Keefe discussion of exciting Italian Volcanic Wines, and Decanter's sharing a list of top Volcanic Wines. A Forbes article by Tom Mullins declares that Volcanic Wines has become a hot topic. Food and Wines Peter Weltman article on Volcanic Wines 101 notes what is distinct about grapes grown in volcanic soils "is the potential to grow some of the most mineral-laden and distinct wines on earth." Weltman reviews Volcanic Wine regions in (Italy (Campania and Sicily's Mount Etna), Hungary (lakeside to royal hills), Greece (volcanic islands), and Spain (Lanzarote). A Elin McCoy article lists eight places known for volcanic wines. In addition, McCoy discusses the activity generated around Szabo's book, and Szabo's organization of the first International Volcanic Wines Conference, followed by the second International Volcanic Wines Conference June 2019, with this June 2026 being the fifth conference in New York. A Rachel Arthur article points out that the buzz on Volcanic Wines started before the international conferences. The discussion was initiated by creating the category Volcanic Wines. Darrel Smith describes an Institute of Masters of Wine (IMW) Volcanic Wines seminar, which raised some of the key scientific questions on volcanic terroir. Given Volcanic Wines has become a hot topic it will continue to be a focus of upcoming inquiries.
Similarly, in the Canary Islands, exciting discussions on Volcanic Wines are continuing to emerge. I have read about projects such as (1) Gran Canaria white wines from the Gran Canaria project of footballer David Silva at Bodegas Tameran, and (2) a partnership with Jonatan Garcia of Suertes de Marques, and David’s wines. Lanzarote's Puro Rofe wines have garnered critical acclaim both domestically and in export markets. All too soon our February 2026 visit to the Canary Islands was over. I look forward to returning to the Canary Islands in the near future. Join me in the sharing of wine adventures from Canary Islands and elsewhere at Wine Travels with Dr. Sharon and at Spaswinefood on Bluesky and Facebook.
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Summary of one of my earlier posts on Volcanic Wines
John Szabo's Master Class on Volcanic Wines at the 2018 Rovinhud Wine Show in Timisoara, Romania was quite informative. Szabo, a Master Sommelier, has written a book entitled Volcanic Wines: Salt, Grit and Power. In his book volcanic soil is presented as a basis for understanding a wide range of grapes and wine regions. His Rovinhud presentation included wines from the volcanic regions of Greece, Italy, Sicily, and Hungary.
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| Mount Etna Crater, Sicily 2014 © Spaswinefood |
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| Rovinhud Wine Show 2018 © Spaswinefood |
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| Volcanic Wines, Rovinhud Wine Show 2018 © Spaswinefood |
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| Master Class on Volcanic Wines, Rovinhud 2018 © Spaswinefood |
Italy
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| Mount Etna, Sicily 2014 © Spaswinefood |
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| November 2014 , Slopes of Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
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| Countryside, Etna Area © Spaswinefood |
Hungary
Szabo's presentation provided insights into Volcanic Wines produced from grapes grown in volcanic soils. First, I must admit that the overall idea of a link between volcanic soils and wines makes sense. The Volcanic Wines Master Class was the perfect opportunity for me to get a more in-depth understanding of the diversity of volcanic wines from the various wine regions. I enjoyed getting to know wines from a volcanic wine perspective. Clearly, the exploration of Volcanic Wines adds a significant contribution to the overall understanding of terroir driven wines.
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| Szövérdfi-Szép Zoltán, Rovinhud Wine Show, 2018 © Spaswinefood |
