Egypian Wine: Egypt winery seeks ancient inspiration for success

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01:49

The adverse conditions of Egypt's climate often prove disadvantageous for any wine. But a small winery is fighting to produce an all-Egyptian award-winning wine. Take a look.

Under the dry soils and hot sun of Egypt's Red Sea, an Egyptian winery called 'Koroum of the Nile' is seeking ancient Egyptian inspiration for present day success. The winery was established in 2003 and has overcome many challenges when delving in the world of Egyptian wine, such as the hot sun and even the lack of wine-drinking culture.

RANIA MUBARAK, MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE KOROUM OF THE NILE "What we are doing here is the revival of the Egyptian vineyard. We are rebuilding, we are replanting the vineyard, in extreme conditions, let's say. It is not a welcoming environment because the people are not wine drinkers in the country. So we are introducing a culture for the Egyptian."

Now the winery has reached a capacity of almost 4 million bottles a year of organic Egyptian white, red and rose wine. Although the company faces competition from Dutch giant Heineken, but the Egyptian establishment is the only one to rely solely on homegrown grapes.

LABIB KALLAS, MANAGER KOROUM OF THE NILE "When tourists drink wine, they have to drink wine that reflects Egypt, its farms, its sun, and its weather. Everything related to Egypt must be reflected in the glass of wine you are drinking. And this is what we are doing."

The wine has managed to rake in 14 international medals, including the Bronze at the Decanter World Wine Awards in 2012 and the Challenge Millesime Bio for their Jardin du Nil red wine. The winery said that they are trying to produce an acceptable all-Egyptian wine from the local Banati grape, a first in the world of winemaking in Egypt.