Malta Food and Wine

Meridiana Wine Estate

The Inner Yard at Meridiana Wine Estate
Meridiana Wine Estate
Ta’ Qali, BZN 09
Telephone: (+356) 2141 3550
Website: www.meridiana.com.mt

At Meridiana there is a feel of Boutique Winery. Their mission to produce "World Class Wines of maltese Character" is reflected all the way from the winemaker Roger Aquilina's passion for 'real Maltese wines' down to the Maltese lime stone cellar. Mr Aquilina's philosophy is "When you sell a wine with grapes from Malta, you are selling Malta".
Meridiana is the only winery on the island that has its own estate, and the purpose built building for administration, winemaking and cellaring is surrounded by the vineyards. The site is relatively small at 19 hectares (47 acres) and only around 120,000 bottles are produced each year. All grapes are hand picked by temporary pickers who are called in at short notice when the grapes are at their optimum ripeness in August and September.
Care is taken att all stages of the wine making process making sure grapes are pressed and vinified gently and that the use of filtration is minimised. The resulting wines reflect this in their obtained fruitiness and well balanced characteristics.Until recently all of Meridiana’s wines have been made from grapes from their estate in Ta’ Qali. However due to high demand they now have a small co-operative of growers who supply them with grapes for the production of a new wine which is being launched in April 2008 – Astarte, which is made from the Vermentino Grape variety.

Meridiana's Selection of Wines

All the wine names have strong links with the region of origin. For example some of he names are of Gods and Goddess' from Phoenician times, and "Mistral" reflects the influence of the Mistral wind that normally blows across the island. Malta is geographically located inte the "old word" of wine making, but with new winemaking techniques and knowledge there is an influence of "new world" and this is reflected in the Nexus logo.

Wine tours are available daily and last approximately one hour. Visitors will be given a talk of the history of Meridiana Wine Estate and then taken for a short tour to view the vineyards. There is an opportunity to taste some of the wines and there is also a shop where a selection of wines is available. For wine tours it is advisable to call for an appointment (either for individual or group tastings). Visiting hours are Monday – Friday 09.00 – 15.30 hours, and Saturday between 10.00 – 12.00 hours. Appointments can also be done via their website.