Connecting shores at the first Mediterranean Wine Symposium

East, meet West. West, East.

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It goes without saying that the Mediterranean Sea is a tremendously large body of water.

As it spans some 3,700km, forming the southern boundary of what we define as “Europe”, its waters shimmer with undulations of blue and green, lapping along beaches that are stony and rugged more often than sandy and soft.

Every year millions flock to these shores to bathe in a sun that has allowed humanity to grow plentiful crops over the millennia ranging from wheat to olives to grapes.

Ironically, despite this sea serving to connect humanity historically via vast maritime trade routes, in the modern age, it can be difficult to move latitudinally from east to west, especially outside of the summer tourism months. If wanting to go from say, Spain to Croatia in February, one needs to make the journey not only on a Northern European airline, but also via a connecting flight through a northern airport.

This lack of connections hasn’t fostered a great deal of communication across the Mediterranean, especially when it comes to wine. There is after all a tremendous amount of common ground for winemakers in this region, but as someone who has traversed the south of Europe, from east to west for nearly two decades, I can attest that the exchanges on a vinous level are often less than what’s needed for this day and age.

Thus it was an excellent new initiative by the Perelada winery in Empordà, Catalunya to hold a “Mediterranean Wine Symposium” this past March 23rd. The ultimate goal is to serve as a bridge and connect all these points in a vast sea that will need to work together for the future.