Day Six: The God Father Of Maltese Wine at Montekristo Winery

Art Finds A Way
"I am passionate about wine especially what this country (Malta) can do with wine. I believe that we have the capability of making some of the best wines anywhere especially here at Montekristo." This is how Greg and I were introduced to Mr. Victor Bonello, the unofficial Maltese Godfather of Wine whose passion about wine is only exceeded by his generous and magnanimous nature.
Victor is an enigma, a believer in what was up to recently unbelievable. "They (Maltese in general) were not wine drinkers. They drank beer and no one believed that great wine could be made here in Malta."
However, Victor remained true to his passion and his country and persisted until he joined forces with Charles Polidano, a business man par excellence, who gave Victor the support needed to prove to everyone what could be done.
First was the making of wine which Victor supervised and with the care that a mother chicken gives to her hens, developed the vineyards and collaborated with farmers to give top quality grapes to make wine. Then came the experimentation with various varieties of grapes such as Cabernet, Merlot, Syrah, Chardonnay, Viognier and finally to get the best equipment necessary for these grapes to become fully functional and show their true greatness.
"I even have computer operated fermentation tanks that can basically do the job themselves"he
said. But, the winemaker still has to fulfill the final decision.
We toured the vineyards where the pickers were getting the last of the Cabernet Sauvignon. I tasted the grapes. Very ripe with about 20 to 22 Brix. Good stuff. The wines should have a natural alcohol level of about 12.5 to 13.0% though that was my conservative estimate. of course we filmed the grapes being picked. The wines he made in this winery showed tremendous promise and had the power to improve. Victor wasn't satisfied.
In order to have the people come, one must provide them with a place to come to and to be in awe of. So he built a large spacious winery based on the new concept of Agri-tourism. Like another visionary that lives in Canada known as Donald Ziraldo, Victor created a winery with flair, presence and entertainment. The main winery was built in a Nouveau Greco design and is a masterpiece of architectural engineering. The cafeteria, display building and entertainment lounges built for both tourists and wine professionals are a mastery of art and science.
Statues of iconic figures such as Julius and Augustus Caesar greet the visitor and all along way to the wine cellars and cafeteria, there are major works of art-----all sculptures. The entertainment lounges which house special theme events such as the fully costumed reenactment the Great Siege are amazing and the wines are superb.
Lunch With Friends
It was now time for lunch so off we went to the private office of Charles Polidano, Victor and a host of business guests from Italy. "We only invite our friends to this place," said Victor. We felt honoured.
The meal was delicious and consisted of fish with stir fry veggies and Maltese bread. The fish was a special type that lives around the island and called Scorpion Fish because of the sharp thorn like pectoral fin that protrudes from its back. I had the usual filet fare but Greg----well Greg had to be adventurous (remember Portugal?!). He had the head and was thought by Victor to eat it (It was Victor's favourite part!) I enjoyed the body with Maltese bread and for those who have never tasted Maltese bread, you are missing one of the true delicacies of the globe. There is nothing like Maltese bread--- think I've said that already!
The wines went very well with the fish since the fish were cooked in such a way as to complement the wine and vice versa. Montekristo should be proud of what they have achieved in such a small space of time.
Wines
Paulus Chardonnay: A rather nice tasting wine. Medium bodied with nice pear/apple/mango overtones and a slight Vanilla in the finish, Nice wine.
Paulus Syrah/Cabernet Sauvignon: Excellent, medium to full bodied wine with loads of extract and pepper with ripe black cherry and plum flavours on the nose and cherry, plum and pepper on the palate. Nice wine of its type.
Magnus: A splendid wine that is made with indigenous grapes: Marsus Ta-Nahal and Catalan
which are blended with Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon. Nose of peper, ripe black fruit with a palate of Ripe red and black fruit and a long lasting finish. The bottle is interesting since it has a Pewter label which is personally signed by Victor Bonello. This one of Jack Nicolson and Madonna's favourite wines.
Victor told me a story that he published and I will retell it too you simply because it is quite good and can become a piece of Maltese folklore if taken seriously.
Ulysses, The Lion and Wine
Now we all know that Ulysses landed in Malta and came under the influence of a Sorceress. He spent seven years charmed by her but one day he went away to hunt. He found a pig and slaughtered it. While he was cleaning the pig, a lion came up and tried to take the pig away from him. A vicious fight ensued which resulted in the death of the lion but Ulysses was also mortally wounded. The Sorceress, found Ulysses almost dead and sacrificed a lamb to the gods in order for him to live. The blood of the lion mixed with the blood of Ulysses and was turned to wine and just as that happened, Ulysses came back to full life. He was saved and had wine also.
Now it is said, that when men partake in wine, if they have a glass or two, they become lambs. If they have a bottle they become lions but if they drink more than they should they become pigs. Nice story.
Later that evening we joined Mr. Polidano and Bonello at the winery for a friends' dinner. Great time had by all.