Hello everyone. My name is Fabio Quintero Armas, and I hold a degree in Agricultural and Rural Environment Engineering. I currently work for Vinigrán, the Federation of Viticulturists and Winemakers of Gran Canaria, where I coordinate part of the Island Plan for the Development of Viticulture.

Today, I will talk to you about viticulture in Gran Canaria. In terms of surface area, vine cultivation is the fifth largest on the island, following banana, potato, citrus, and tomato. Nonetheless, it holds significant traditional and cultural importance.

Like in the rest of the seven Canary Islands, Gran Canaria boasts one of the most unique forms of viticulture in the world. Vines are found all across the island, ranging in altitude from 104 to 1,433 meters above sea level. The municipalities with the highest vine cultivation are Las Palmas de Gran Canaria, Santa Brígida, and San Mateo.

The next part of my presentation shows a collaborative project carried out by Vinigrán, the Wine Route, and the Gran Canaria Designation of Origin. We aimed to register all local grape varieties currently cultivated on the island. While other non-local varieties like Tempranillo, Syrah, and Garnacha are also grown, they represent a minimal share and were therefore excluded from our registry.

The most widely planted variety is Listán Negro, followed by Volcanic Malvasia, Albillo Criollo, Marmajuelo, Tintilla, Berija Diego (from El Hierro), Baboso Negro, Vijariego Negro, Moscatel, and in tenth place, Castellana. The remaining varieties occupy a very small percentage.

The average vineyard parcel size in Gran Canaria is about 6,100 square meters. If we analyze by size category, we see that, like in the rest of the Canary Islands, land is highly fragmented: 116 plots are under 2,000 m2, only 19 between 6,000 and 8,000 m2, and just 4 over 5 hectares.

Gran Canaria, like Tenerife and La Palma, has extremely challenging terrain. A slope analysis shows: 81 hectares of vineyards with slopes under 15%, 82.5 hectares between 15% and 30%, 70 hectares between 30% and 60%, and 3.25 hectares above 60%.

Regarding altitude, many vineyards are located between 400 and 600 meters, and others between 1,000 and 1,300 meters. These higher vineyards are found in Tejeda and upper San Mateo.

CERVIM, the Center for Research in Mountain Viticulture, defines “heroic viticulture” by one of three criteria: being located on a small island, on a slope over 30%, or at altitudes above 500 meters. Since the Canary Islands meet the small island criterion, all their vineyards could technically qualify as heroic. However, CERVIM does not define what constitutes a small island in terms of size.

So I investigated further and found: 74 hectares are on slopes over 30%, 113.42 hectares are above 500 meters in altitude, and 45 hectares meet both criteria.

This next map shows both the 500-meter elevation line and slope gradients. I want to highlight vineyards in San Mateo, where the highest percentage of vineyards meet both heroic criteria. Special mention goes to Bodegas Lava, doing amazing recovery work in this rugged area. I also know of impressive efforts in Lanzarote, like Titerokakaet, which is recovering old vineyards, and Vicky Torres, who is working with native varieties on her island. Their work is truly admirable.

This is what I mean by heroic vineyards. Imagine needing to create tracks like in Ribeira Sacra just to harvest. Gran Canaria’s landscape is incredibly rugged, with diverse microclimates in its ravines.

I divided the island into three slopes or aspects, each with distinct characteristics, though they share common features: in lower areas, relative humidity is often above 90%. As altitude increases, temperatures drop, especially in winter. Higher elevations also face fewer pest and disease pressures, making organic viticulture more viable and logical.

Let’s start with the northern slope. This area is strongly influenced by the trade winds, which bring cool, moist air from across the Atlantic. Temperatures here are mild, and extreme heat waves are rare. There’s a thermal inversion around 600 meters: normally, it gets colder as you go up, but in summer, the cloud cover traps heat, making higher areas warmer. For example, while lower areas may be at 24–25ºC, upper San Mateo can reach 35–36ºC. Rainfall is more frequent here due to the trade winds, and red wines dominate.

The southern slope, shielded from the trade winds by the mountains, is much drier and hotter. Annual rainfall is minimal (120–150 mm in good years), and the sun exposure is extreme. There’s also a strong day-night temperature contrast. Heat accelerates ripening, but red grapes lose anthocyanins and end up as rosés. As a result, white varieties now dominate, especially Volcanic Malvasia.

The western slope is transitional, about 70% similar to the south and 30% to the north. Summers are very hot and dry; winters, cold and wet. Pests and diseases are less common, so just one or two sulfur treatments per year usually suffice. Both white and red grapes thrive here.

We conducted a climate zone study using all weather stations on the island and categorized them using the Winkler scale.

To finish, here are photos of vineyards from the western, northern, and southern slopes.

Thank you very much. I hope you enjoyed the presentation, and I’ll be happy to answer any questions you may have.