Amazing Pico: Wine on Volcanoes – a Historic Landscape in the Azores is written and photographed by Karina Janø.
See the pictures from Pico: Stunning nature and historic wines
Always changing weather, shaken by earthquakes and subject to volcanic eruptions. Over time, the island of Pico in the Azores has Portugal served as a model for many. But the settlers' indomitable drive for survival and a thirst to tame nature would change the island's appearance forever.
The fields, which stretch like a patchwork across the landscape, are dominated by centuries of viticulture and are today a UNESCO-classified world heritage site that you can taste.
When the Portuguese arrived at Pico – one of the nine volcanic islands that make up Azores archipelago in Portugal – at the beginning of the 1400th century, the island quickly earned the nickname the cursed island. Dry and rocky and almost impossible to grow anything on – not to mention the lack of access to fresh water.
Here arrived the lost second-born sons from Portugal – people without means or good prospects for the future. But as in many other places,
The residents, with their ingenuity, adaptability and steely determination, made the place habitable.
Under inhuman conditions, people found ways to survive in a remote and challenging environment, and it was out of necessity that much of the landscape was changed - a change that can still be seen here 500 years later.
The Azores are exotic and diverse, best known for their nature and great opportunities for hiking, cycling and whale watching, but their history and culinary experiences are perhaps an even more exciting gateway to the islands.
Come to Pico and hear the fascinating story of how survival required creativity, which literally gave rise to a product that has stood the test of time and become a highly sought-after commodity. We take you out into the vineyard, into the cave, out to the coast and down into the wine cellar.
Wine on volcanoes
Pico was discovered by the Portuguese in 1432, but was only truly inhabited from around the 1480s by Portuguese, French and Flemish settlers.
Pico is the little brother of the Azores: While the other islands are between 5 and 7 million years old, the oldest part of Pico is 'only' 300.000 years old. The island takes its name from the omnipresent volcano that dominates the black and green landscape.
At 2.351 meters, it towers over the island, whose inhabitants always keep a watchful eye on it. The volcano is also the highest point in Portugal, and with an eruption 1.000 years ago, it is responsible for the black lava rocks that spread across the island.
It was not until the Franciscan monk Pedro Gigante arrived at the end of the 15th century that people began to settle on the barren north side of the island.
He asked the landowners on the neighboring island of Faial if he could try to grow something here. Maybe they thought he was crazy, but the answer was: “If you can, do it.”
It was the start of the wine revolution that made the Azores world-famous in the 18th and 19th centuries and the cultivation in very special environments that still delivers excellent wines to this day.
No soil – only rocks on Pico
No soil, no sand – just lava rock. What do you do with that?
Pedro Gigante had brought with him vines of the Verdelho type from another volcanic area – probably Sicily or CyprusHe and those who were desperate enough began the hard work of carving small cracks in the basalt rocks and then filling them with a scant handful of soil purchased on the neighboring island of Faial.
Here they planted the vines, whose strong roots would then begin to search for water and nutrients. The vines were planted at an angle so that they grew along the ground and not upright, as is usually seen in vineyards.
The excess pebbles were used to build walls and small enclosures between the fields, which proved to be a stroke of genius, as they not only organized the fields between the owners, but also provided shelter from wind and sea spray.
The lava rocks absorbed the heat from the sun, creating a warm and dry microclimate that gave the vines optimal conditions for ripening, while at the same time absorbing minerals and salt from the sea and the wind.
It is said that on Pico, the vines should always be planted where you can hear the crabs singing, which explains the unique crisp and salty taste of the wines from there. They planted close to the sea, as it was warmer and sunnier here than higher up the mountain.
Today, wine is still grown in the same way and on the same fields as Pedro Gigante and his contemporaries did out of pure survival 500 years ago.
The wine-growing landscape and the local wine-growing culture are mostly intact, well-preserved and without the addition of modern structures. This was recognized by UNESCO in 2004, and the landscape and cultivation practices now have World Heritage status.
Historical traces
The landscape is also dominated by other infrastructure that came along as viticulture took off.
Not only was it hard work to cut stone; it was also hard to get food and water on the island when the first settlers arrived. Special wells were invented and windmills were built so that they could grind the grain that they practically lived on.
The Frade windmill, which can be seen in Lajido da Criação Velha, is a reconstruction of the original, but offers a good view of the countryside. Here you will also find small stone buildings where the farmers stored their tools and stone walls.
Fig trees are often planted between the vines, as they can survive almost anywhere and lure birds away from the grapes. The farmers also built manor houses, wine cellars, churches and 'rola-pipas' – ramps from which wine barrels were rolled down to waiting boats that docked below.
Other evidence of the wine-growing activities are the so-called 'rilheiras' – wheel tracks in the volcanic rock left by heavy ox-drawn carts loaded with grapes or wine barrels.
Pico: An international success
Pico's location on one of the major world trade routes Atlantic meant that many ships stopped here to refuel with food and water.
Therefore, the wine produced on the island was gradually sent around the world via the visiting boats. Many of them brought spices with them from other parts of the world to trade with. That is why many of the traditional dishes on Pico are full of spices.
Later, word spread about the quality of the wine, and in the 18th century it was exported to many countries in Northern Europe og AmericaEven the Russian Tsars developed a fondness for Pico's wines, and they began importing the more concentrated fortified wines.
Wine production reached its peak in the 19th century, but then it also stopped abruptly when the plants became diseased. Subsequent attempts with other varieties failed, and many fields were abandoned.
In the early 20th century, the industry slowly recovered and over time, a new generation of winemakers are reviving the classic Pico wines, combined with the introduction of new varieties, with great success.
Precious grapes from Pico
Most wines produced on Pico are white wines, and they are made primarily from the three indigenous grape varieties Arinto dos Açores, Verdelho dos Açores and Terrantez do Pico. Although these continue to thrive on the island today, and the volcanic soil is rich in nutrients, growing wine in the changeable environment is not always easy.
Regular storms, water in the grapes and the changing seasons can cause diseases or mold and damage the harvest. And since the grapes are grown close to the sea, the salt in the air can burn the young shoots if there is no rain or wind. That is why the farmers tend and harvest the valuable fields as if they were their own garden and always by hand – machines cannot be used here.
Many locals own a plot of land, and the harvest is purchased by, among others, Pico Wines, which was founded in 1949 and is the oldest and largest wine producer in the Azores. Their winemaker continuously checks the sugar in the grapes and gives the green light when it can be harvested.
Before the grapes are transported to the winery, they are divided into varieties and according to the area they were grown in. It is important for the winemaker to know when to make the blending ratios.
What is certain is that those grown at Lajido da Criação Velha are kept separate, as they are made from a single type of grape, and the vineyard is the oldest on the island. Old vines give a different intensity to the wine and thus better wines. It is also here that the iconic and rare Tzar Wine is grown – bottles that today can cost up to several thousand euros each.
Volcanic wine
Gruta das Torres is, with its 5.150 meters, the largest known lava tunnel in Portugal.
The cave was formed by lava flows from the Cabeco Bravo volcano, which created the lava rocks of the Lajido da Criação Velha fields. As an experiment, Pico Wines placed over 1.000 bottles of wine here to see how the cave environment affects the maturation of the wines.
The wine is made from the Arinto grape, unique to the Azores and grown in Lajido da Criação Velha, which poetically completes the wine's journey. The cave gives the wine a more volcanic profile and takes away much of the salinity, while the stable humidity, darkness and temperature of around 15 degrees stabilize the maturation.
Wine changes over time, but in the cave it oxidizes more slowly and takes on a different color and flavor profile. A lot of different plants grow in and around the cave, and you can come across wild ginger from Himalayas, a special type of laurel, a tree from Australia, moss that only grows in a few places in the Azores, and the strongly scented 'incense'.
People have been good at using all parts of plants throughout history. For example, every child in the Azores knows which plant they can extract sugar from if the urge arises. Here you can also find leaves that can be used for shelters, to bake bread with or make flour from.
Taste of Pico
You can go wine tasting at several producers on the island – including Pico Wines.
The founders of the winery were producers who wanted to preserve the noble grape varieties and wine-growing culture on the island. By adding new knowledge, they therefore contribute to carrying forward traditional growing techniques with a focus on quality over quantity.
The philosophy is to get as much of the wine's origin and natural character into the bottle as possible. Since 2017, Pico Wines has had a greater focus on dividing into grape varieties and areas with the entire island represented.
New wines are added continuously, and each vintage is naturally different – not least when you are located in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean and are subject to constantly changing weather conditions.
What sets Pico's wines apart from other volcanic wines is the proximity to the sea, which increases the salinity, and the young age of the volcano, which means there are other nutrients in the soil.
Enjoy your great wine experience on Pico at Azores in Portugal.
10 experiences on Pico in the Azores
- The special vineyards Lajido da Criação Velha and Lajido de Santa Luzia
- Beautiful hiking routes through the Pico landscape
- Lava cave Gruta das Torres
- Wine tasting
- Wine Museum Museu do Vinho
- Volcano museum Casa dos Vulcões
- Restaurants with local specialties
- Whale watching
- Pico's highest point – Montanha do Pico
- Sao Joao Baptista Fort
Did you know: Here are the 7 cities in Europe with the most hours of sunshine
7: Nice in France – 342 hours/month
6: Valencia in Spain – 343 hours/month
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