Marsovin’s Marnisi has become the first premium Maltese wine to be certified organic and awarded the coveted official Organic Wine seal. To celebrate the launch of Malta's first ever organic wine (which as I learned, is no mean feat) the winery held an exclusive tasting event at the Marsovin Cellars this week.

Our host, winery CEO and fourth generation family member Jeremy Cassar welcomed us with pride, maintaining, “we are very proud to be the first Maltese winery to successfully produce a premium organic wine. Although, Marnisi already enjoys popularity among the Maltese, we felt that converting to organic status would further increase the selection of wine available to wine lovers on the island, and further add value to the Maltese wine industry” – hear hear!

After a welcome drink and a short tour of Marsovin’s fantastic cellars, we were treated to an exclusive wine paired-dinner using mainly organic ingredients prepared by the Mediterranean Culinary Academy, a start-up academy which – aside from providing culinary courses – has created a network of young farmers in Malta who are transitioning into fully organic.

First, Marsovin’s fantastic 1919 White was paired with a red bream carpaccio, granny smith apples, cucumber and pistachio puree – a light and flavourful option to kick off the dinner and set the scene for the main event. And what a spectacle it was: in a true first for Malta, both the wine and the food for the main course was fully organic, comprising a grass-fed beef ribeye with mixed berry jus, potato puree with charred onion and pickled shallot, which paired wonderfully with the Marnisi 2016. To finish, a glass of Marsovin’s Guze went down brilliantly with a carob and almond biscuit, chocolate and amaretto cake, cherry infused mascarpone and cherries poached in Guze.

Explaining the challenges of the rigorous three-year organic certification process, Mr Cassar revealed that the organic conversion process began with the application of organic farming practices at the Marnisi Estate in Marsaxlokk, where an area covering 2.8 hectares makes it the largest expanse of organically-farmed vines anywhere in Malta.

In order to have organically-grown grapes, Marsovin’s viticulturists engaged in an entirely different set of practices to maintain their vines. Viticulturist Christian Cremona breaks it down, explaining, “we had to convert our existing estates to organic practices, and after some trial and error to reduce the plant protection products we used, we earmarked Marnisi as our first organic wine.”

Following the vineyard conversion, the harvested grapes were transferred to the winery, where an alternative winemaking approach was used, focusing on a specific list of ingredients for organic vinification. As a result, Marnisi 2016 is now the first officially-certified organic Maltese wine launched locally! And for the wine aficionados out there, here’s what it tastes like:

“The 2016 vintage was characterised by warmer-than-normal temperatures and drier weather during the winter months, followed by relatively mild temperatures throughout summer. These elements allowed for very good grape maturity and, thus, an exceptional vintage year. The resultant wine, MARNISI 2016, portrays a concentrated, complex and layered wine that is very approachable in its infancy and will keep drinking well in the years to come.”

Malta’s first organic wine is available in all premium wine shops, as well as the Marsovin Cellars in Paola and The Master Cellar in Naxxar. 

Michael Calleja