Binissalem
Binissalem - Overview:
Binissalem is a short step from the main highway that runs from Palma to Inca, just 20 minutes from Palma, ten minutes from the mountains and half an hour from beautiful golden sandy beaches on either side of the island. This small Majorcan town is at the centre of Mallorca's wine making industry and is surrounded by bodegas and wine wholesalers. The Binissalem area has a long-standing tradition of wine production and became a 'Denomination of Origin' at the end of 1990. This beautiful region of vineyards is located at the heart of Mallorca and encompasses the towns of Sencelles, Binissalem, Santa Maria del Cami, Consell and Santa Eugenia. In addition to its wine-making heritage, Binissalem is steeped in a gentle history with some literary connections, a thousand year old Moorish influence and it is also famous for its stonework, carpentry and architecture - outside of Palma, Binissalem is home to more small palaces than any other town on Mallorca.
Binissalem - Climate:
The Sierra de Tramuntana mountains and Alfabia range of hills protects Binissalem's vineyards from northerly winds, creating a mild micro-climate. The weather can be described as mild Mediterranean, with warm dry summers and short winters with an average annual rainfall of 450mm.
Binissalem - Geography:
The land is rich in calcium creating limy brown soil which sometimes has a limestone crust. There are rolling hills and most vineyards are located between 75 and 200 metres above sea level.
Binissalem - History:
Vine cultivation began on Mallorca in around 121BC, when Quintus Caecilius Metellus conquered the island. In the first century BC, Pliny wrote about Balearic wines, comparing them with the best in Italy. During the period of Arab domination, and despite the prohibition of the Koran, vine cultivation prospered and, when King Jaume I conquered the island in 1230, the Moor Beni Abet offered him grapes of excellent quality. Following the conquest, the courts of Aragon and then Castile encouraged the growth of vine cultivation and introduced a system of plantation licenses. These courts frequently ordered wine.
In 1862, the phylloxera grape vine blight appeared in France. This resulted in the mass importation of wines from Spain and Italy to satisfy demand. Vineyards spread quickly across Mallorca between 1865 and 1890, when vine cultivation and wine production on the island reached its peak in terms of quantity. In 1891 almost 50 million litres of wine left Majorca, mainly for France and the Iberian Peninsula. Vineyards also spread to the neighbouring Balearic island of Menorca. Wine exports, especially to France, thrived. Unfortunately Phylloxera reached Mallorca in 1891, destroying many vines and decimating the island's main source of income. This crisis in wine production was one of the major causes of emigration in the late 19th century especially in rural areas where cultivation was the main source of employment.
During the first half of the twentieth century, the total vineyard area on Mallorca ranged between 5,000 and 8,500 hectares. After the Spanish Civil War, there was a slow decline in vine cultivation, due to the need to use the land for other agricultural produce. Nevertheless, the last two decades of the twentieth century was a great period for the wine industry on the island, not in terms of quantity, but instead in terms of a very significant improvement in quality.
Binissalem - Today:
Today vine cultivation and wine production is still very important in Binissalem and has led to major economic development. Binissalem's skyline is dominated by the spire of the town church. In front of the church is the main square, lined with a few bars, restaurants and shops selling local produce and household goods. Local fiestas include the Festa d'es Verema in September which marks the grape harvest with folk dancing in the church square accompanied by copious amounts of wine.
A walk through the town is like stepping back in time. There are still people here who don't lock their doors at night - so trusting are the local inhabitants. Small children are often seen late at night in the church square unaccompanied, as their parents know that any adult in the vicinity will function "in loco parentis" should the occasion require, be it with a helping hand or a disciplinary admonition.
Binissalem is, to a surprising degree, untouched, unspoiled, innocent and unexploited, and the locals are keen to keep it this way. They are trying to attract some sophisticated tourism into the town, but hope it won't be overtaken by all the elements that can so often conspire to spoil delightfully traditional towns when they become over commercialised.
Binissalem - Our holiday accommodation and service:
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