The constitutional monarchy of Morocco (Arabic: المغرب al-Maghrib) in north-west Africa with its capital Rabat covers 446,550 km². It is separated from the European continent by the Strait of Gibraltar. Morocco borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west and Algeria to the east. The southern border is disputed.
History
Viticulture dates back to the Phoenicians. At the beginning of the 1st century, the Romans took over, named the new province Mauritania (and the population Berber) and introduced grape varieties from the Mediterranean countries. There are numerous archaeological finds. The picture on the left shows a mosaic of the wine god Bacchus in Volubilis, an archaeological site in the prefecture of Meknès. The area was conquered by the Arabs at the end of the 7th century. Due to the early Islamisation and the associated ban on alcohol, viticulture came to a complete standstill.
Viticulture today
Morocco was a French protectorate from 1912 to 1956. Before the First World War, many French colonists came to the country and established viticulture in the middle of large desert areas with a hot and dry climate. Large quantities of wine were delivered to Languedoc to fortify bulk wines with alcohol. In 1956, Morocco became independent and exports to France were banned. The French vineyard owners were expropriated in 1973, and by 1985 most of the vineyards had been taken over by the state and wine production drastically reduced.
But then there was a turnaround. The almost completely destroyed vineyards were reactivated with the help of French experts. Morocco has now become one of the largest wine producers in the Islamic world. The state is somewhat more tolerant of the religious ban on alcohol than other Islamic states such as Saudi Arabia or Iran, as the majority of production is consumed in the country, officially by tourists.
Grape variety index
In 2021, the vineyards covered 42,286 hectares and the wine production volume was 409,000 hectolitres. Most of the land is used for the production of table grapes and sultanas. The grape variety chart (Kym Anderson):
AOG appellation system
Following the French model, the AOG (Appellation d'Origine Garantie) appellation system was introduced in 1956. The most important and best growing area is the Fèz-Meknès region in the northern foothills of the Atlas Mountains. The Sais, Beni Sadden, Beni M'Tir, Guerrouane and Zerkhoun appellations are located here, with red wines mainly made from the Carignan Noir (Mazuelo), Cinsaut and Grenache Noir (Garnacha Tinta) varieties imported from France. Another growing area is the coastal plain around the capital Rabat in the Chellah, Gharb, Zaer and Zemmour regions.
The Berkane-Oudaya area lies to the east on the border with Algeria. South along the coast in the Casablanca region are the Doukkala, Sahel and Zennata zones. One problem in Moroccan viticulture, apart from the hot, dry climate, is the chergui or sharqi, a hot, dry wind from the Sahara that is similar to the sirocco. It causes the grapes to wither very quickly into sultanas. The picture above right shows a traditional water pumping system for the Oudaya vineyard.
Wine production
Production is dominated by two huge vineyards. The state-owned "Domaine de Sahari" near Meknès was built in 1993. A well-known brand is the red wine cuvée "Rouge de Guerrouane" made from Cinsaut, Carignan Noir, Grenache Noir, Alicante Bouschet and Syrah. The second company "Celliers de Meknès", founded in 1964, cultivates around 2,100 hectares and produces 24 million bottles annually. Well-known brands include the red wine cuvée "Rouge de Guerrouane" and the Bordeaux blend "Chateau Roslane". Other producers include Chaudsoleil and Sicomar. A speciality as a refreshing drink is the sweet AOG dessert wine Vin gris from the Boulaouane vineyard between Casablanca and Marrakesh. This rosé is made from the light-coloured Cinsaut and Carignan Noir varieties and accounts for around 10% of production. Morocco is also an important supplier of cork.
Map: © Goruma
Flag: Public domain, Link
Coat of arms: Public domain, Link
Bacchus: par David Ooms - flickr .com/photos, CC BY 2.0, Lien
Water pumping system: par mustapha ennaimi - flickr.com/photos/ennaimi, CC BY 2.0, Lien
