Best season to travel to Canary Islands

Wine Season

An exotic way of growing vines and the fabulous tastes of dried​ and sweets is truly a highlight of the islands

Best time: July–October

Wine Season
Wine Season
Wine Season
Wine Season

Islands, which are so popular for their eternal spring climate, have the perfect temperature, humidity, winds, and volcanic grounds to grow a wide variety of grapes. Special grape varieties, such as Malvasia and Malmsey are primarily used to produce wine.

In the 17th century wines from this region were beloved by the European aristocracy. Later on, when the new trends of the wine industry were mostly coming from France and Portugal, everyone had forgotten about the wines of the Canary Islands. Most wineries were destroyed, and only a few of them survived. Nowadays all seven islands together have over ten wine producing zones, five of which are concentrated on Tenerife.

In order to grow grapes, a small crater should be made on the surface of black lava for the vines to access the rich soil. Small stone walls, called Hoyo​, are built around these holes to protect the vines from the strong winds. Some of the islands use another method of growing grapes. Vines grow on wooden trestles at the height of 70 cm. Visit the islands during harvest season, when wineries are holding celebrations, tasting sessions and excursions where you can see how the wine harvest takes place. The region is famous for dry whites, but red wines are produced as well.