A Small Selection of Rare Wines from Victoria Torres Pecis
1/3/2025
La Palma is the northwesternmost island in the Canary Island chain, and among the youngest of the volcanic isles. An enormous caldera dominates the island, and the most recent major eruption was less than 50 years ago. Characterized by intense altitude variations (the highest peak rises nearly 2,500 meters above the sea) and a stark contrast between black ash soils in the south and the lush and very green north, it has a long history of viticulture, with grapes grown in the wide variety of microclimates across the island. In particular, La Palma was long known for its sweet Malvasía wines, which were treasured on both sides of the Atlantic in the 18th and 19th centuries. As the Canary Islands have managed to insulate themselves from phylloxera, these vineyards are living representatives of this history, with many vines dating back to the 19th century and beyond. All the wines offered today come from ungrafted, own-rooted vines - and many of these vines are very old.
Victoria Torres Pecis and her family are an important part of that history. Based in Fuencaliente, on La Palma's southern tip, the Torres family have been farming the local grape varieties and making wine for five generations. Vicki now works roughly seven hectares of vines spread across the island, from Fuencaliente in the south to Garafia in the north, where altitudes reach 1400 meters. The vineyards are planted with varieties indigenous to the Canary Islands: Malvasía, Negramoll, Lístan Negro, Lístan Prieto, Albillo, and Forastera. Working organically and by hand, restoring old vineyards, Victoria produces wines of impressive purity and intensity. Her approach in the cellar is tradition and low-intervention. She ferments the grapes with indigenous yeasts in very old pine lagars or in stainless steel tanks, and she uses sulfur sparingly.
These are not mainstream wine collector wines, but there is a small group of wine-lovers who have discovered Victoria's wines, through travel or curiosity. They are high quality wines, that transcend the place they are from (which is hard when that place is the Canary Islands!). They are singular, aromatically astounding, with layers and layers of texture, brain-twisting aromatics, and drinkability. Maybe there is something about La Palma or just something about her wines, but they are all remarkably accessible on opening, and feel good to drink, with both body and mind finding pleasure and beauty.
The selection of wines on offer today has been assembled over the past two years from tiny allocations of individual bottles. The wines are from multiple vintages (2018, 2019, 2021, 2022) and from parcels across La Palma. Quantities are, unfortunately, very limited.
