Halana, Vin Du Moroc , Castel

The Winery

Wine growing in Morocco has an ancient history. The first vineyard was planted by the Romans in the 2nd century. In the mid-1950s, the vineyard was producing up to 3,773,866 barrels. However, production decreased and by the early 90s, it was only producing 5% of its previous volume, or 209,660 barrels.

It was against this background, in 1994, that Castel obtained exploitation agreements from King Hassan II for the vineyard land in the Boulaouane and later the Meknès region. Castel's aim was to restore the Moroccan vineyards to their full splendour. Castel founded the SCVM (Société de vinification et de commercialisation des Vins du Maroc) in order to rebuild this 2,594 acre vineyard. After 4 years of hard work, the first harvests of noble varietals such as Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah were gathered.

Today, the entirely rebuilt Moroccan vineyard is a quality vineyard producing generous, sophisticated and elegant wines in the HALANA image. The imperial city of Meknès is not only the former capital of Morocco but also the main wine producing region in the country. The Meknès vineyard is situated 130 km from the sea, between the foothills of the Atlas mountains to the south and the foot of Mount Zerhoun to the north. Its terroir is very suitable for winegrowing. The sandy, clay-lime soils, combined with a hot, humid climate, favour good maturity of the grapes.

Beni M'tir, Zerhoun and Guerrouane are the three Guaranteed Origin Appellations in which our 822 hectares of vines are planted. The Beni M’tir (562 ha), Zerhoun (39 ha) and the exceptional AOG Guerrouane (221 ha) vineyards. The great diversity of the varietals planted in the Meknès vineyard offers a range of varied flavors and tastes that appeal to all consumers. he Halana range offers 4 varietals: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah red and Syrah rosé out of the 11 present in the vineyard. Since its arrival in 1994, Castel has deployed considerable technical and human resources to obtain quality wines from the Meknès region.

The level of human resources deployed is in line with the significant technical investments made. Nearly 350 people are employed year-round and this figure can reach 900 during harvesting time. A large number of technicians (oenologists, engineers etc.), both French and Moroccan, supported by a team trained in every step of the winemaking process, contributes to the making of quality wines under the leadership of Olivier Spillebout, a French oenologist in charge of quality and Halana winemaking.

The Wines

Cabernet Sauvignon

Beautiful dark ruby colour with a powerful, racy nose: aromas of spices, black fruit (blackcurrant) and green pepper, as well as floral notes of jasmine.

Full and warm on the palate, a balanced, full-bodied, clean wine with mellow tannins.

The ideal accompaniment to grilled or roasted red meat, game and full-bodied cheeses.

 

_________________________________________________

 

_____________________________________________________

 

_____________________________________________________

 

Awards