The foreign uva de La Gomera, an ancient and unique variety.

The foreign uva, originally from La Gomera, is a variety whose origins date back four centuries ago and brings together characteristics that make it unique.

A study funded by the Cabildo de La Gomera and commissioned by the Wine Regulatory Council to the Oenological Technology Research group (Tenecnol) of the University of Rovira il Virgili of Tarragona, confirms what until now was a hypothesis: the well-known white alien variety Junoniense has a particularly particular genome, distant from the rest of those that are part of the database of this group of scholars.

"This singularity can be perfectly usable to vinify high quality and typical wines".

The study, called Characterization of the vitis vinifera genotypes of the Island of La Gomera, explains that the cause of the peculiarities of this grape would lie, not so much in an accumulation of mutations since the beginning of viticulture on the Island, but by crosses or natural hybridizations in ancestral vineyards. Or maybe both processes at the same time.

The work highlights the special uniqueness and varietal richness of the original Canary Islands vines., but even more particularly from La Gomera. In addition, of the stranger, other varieties were also analyzed, such as the black and white listán, black stranger, white muscatel or white malvasia.

The explanation for this originality is that the vine was not exposed to the phylloxera plague., to which is added the isolated evolution of these crops in particular and specific geographical and climatic conditions. "Therefore the current vineyards of Gomera are the result of the accumulation of more random mutations., natural and human hybridization, plus the introduction of new varieties ”over four centuries.

The insularity led to the Canarian vines being free of the phylloxera disease that swept Europe in the 19th century. For this reason, in the Canary Islands they have, the ones that probably, are the oldest vineyards in the Old Continent.

But also, As the islands are a point of passage to America, in the 15th and 16th centuries the introduction of new varieties arrived from other places.. All this has given rise to a complex reality, rich and of great diversity to the point that perhaps there are types of vine that have not yet been fully identified.

In La Gomera it is estimated that the boom of this crop occurred from the seventeenth century, moment when the sugar cane plantation and trade collapsed, and it was located mainly in the north of the Island. As no volcanic process has been detected, It is estimated that the current vines date from the year 1450, moment they arrived on the island. During this time the strains have been exposed to multiple phenomena and evolved "slowly but persistently", what has made them unique.

The cause of this originality would be the crossing between siblings with a very similar genetic load, but with certain and minimal differences. The second is derived from the need to adapt to different conditions, which has involved natural selection processes over the centuries.

The third is a mutation that gives rise to new varietal forms within the same variety., but they clearly differ from the original. And the fourth and last is due to the direct action of man who has acted as an improver between individuals of the same or between different species..

But at the same time the opposite phenomenon also occurs, known as genetic erosion resulting in a loss of wild forms, quality and plant genetic resources. In this context, only the use of autochthonous or minority varieties can provide wines with more typicality and unique characteristics that make them more special and appreciated to the consumer's taste..

The forastera is the result of a particular way of farming in La Gomera that is located on terraces or terraces in rough terrain. This variety supposes the 90% of the island's production, whose wines have held the Denomination of Origin since the year 2003.

The study analyzed 110 samples to conclude that this variety presents a unique and singular profile that is far from any other of those analyzed so far by the University.