When I first moved to Mallorca in 1999 I had a dream to make my own wine. In Sweden there were not enough grapes so my grandparents and later my mum produced fruit wine, like plum and cherry wine when I was a kid. When we decided to buy our own place in Mallorca one of the criteria was to have some space on the land where we could grow grapes and finally try to make our own real wine.
But when we found our dream place in Llucmajor, I soon understood that the winegrowing we had dreamt about was not going to happen. We were told by the owner the property had plenty of water “You just drill a hole, and we would get more water than we ever would need.” His family never used the finca for more than weekend stays and he said they had always brought in the water by truck as it is a quick and “cheap” solution. Shortly after the purchase went through, we sorted all the paperwork and permits to make our own well.
The old man from the village who was known to be able to find water anywhere in the area, came and marked the best place on the property for the well. We drilled and drilled several days going through stones and more stone layers. The third day at noon the guys handling the drill called out Agua!! Water, but it was just a slow, sad brown mess that came out and they excused themselves after drilling 180 metres and said they could not go any deeper. The bill they left of 6000€ killed my wine dreams and pretty much the rest of dreams I had going for that year and more.
I was mad at myself because I had not investigated the conditions and the possibilities better. Now 22 years later we still buy the water by truck and pay 46€ for a load of 13.000 litres. Fincas around ours only grow almond, olives, and carob trees, all resisting trees that does not need too much water.
Some months ago, I ran in to a small ad on Facebook where Sören offered people interested in wine to be a part of his concept Binivista family new Winery in Sencelles. I thought it sounded like a dream come true. I drove over to Sencelles to meet up with him and hear about this exciting project.
The former lawyer had spent numerous holidays on Mallorca where he enjoyed long family vacations and where he came to unwind and do his favourite sport, cycling, where in 2017 he meets Jaume, a Mallorcan farmer who quickly got Sören interested to try his luck as a winemaker. A lot of hard work, several years of pure bureaucracy, arranging permits and all the legal papers today he can look out over a vineyard that he now can call his own.
“We planted the first 21 hectares of vines in March 2018, and in 2020 we have added another 5 hectares, increasing the total vineyard surface area to today’s 26 hectares. All the equipment used in the winery are simply the best money can buy and the first wines that have been made holds a very high quality.”
Only this Dane quickly realised that to make it more fun he wanted to share his adventure with other wine enthusiasts, so he started Binivista family wine club. The concept is easy, you sign up for a year at a time to a very reasonable price and you get to participate as much as you want or can.
As a family member you get to be as much involved in the growing business as you wish, by visiting or following the work at the farm by social media and online meetings if you cannot travel to the island. Of course, you get your share of the harvest every year as well. 42 bottles per year each member get to collect, and the only obligation is that you must enjoy it. The wine bottles can be collected at the bodega, or you can get it sent home. It’s an excellent idea for a Christmas present to someone who has everything but their own vineyard.
The idea from the start was to have social gatherings, winetasting events, art exhibitions and networking sessions and we do expect more of that in 2022.
The bodega has a manifest with 21 points and the idea behind this unique project is to be as optimal as possible during the whole growing process.
Apart from being a lawyer in Denmark, Sören has owned his own professional cycling team. He loves cycling and many of the members in the Binivista family are cyclists.
“I love Mallorca and everything that comes with it. To me it is the perfect place to bring people together and share our passion for wine,” says Sören Svenningsen.
www.binivista.com