The Financial Times highlights Pico wines in an article signed by journalist and wine critic Jancis Robinson.
The Azores Wine Company appears on the “producers to watch out for” list, along with other Portuguese names such as Barca Velha, Herdade do Rocim and Wine&Soul.
The Canary Islands, Spain, Greece, Cyprus, Croatia, China, and Mexico are among the regions experiencing growth in 2025.
“I’ve been talking about Portuguese reds and Greek whites over the years, but now, to my delight, Portuguese whites and Greek reds have gained ground,” writes Jancis Robinson.
“We wine geeks have become accustomed to enjoying the ‘heady’ wines of Spain’s volcanic Canary Islands, but Portugal now has an answer in the form of wines grown in the extraordinary landscape of the volcanic island of Pico in the Azores. Its dry stone-walled corrals are reminiscent of the Irish islands – but in this case, the vines crawl inside each small plot. Most of the wines are dry, tense and slightly saline whites, typically made from the traditional Azorean Arinto or Verdelho grape varieties,” reflects the British wine critic.
She points out that good wines are being produced all over the country, and prices range from “bargains” to more “robust” values, also driven by the growing tourism industry.
The Azores Wine Company was established in Pico by winemaker António Maçanita and Filipe Rocha, executive director of the Azores Tourism and Hotel Training School.

These producers began their journey several years ago. In 2015, for example, Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate magazine classified three of the Pico company’s wines as the best whites in Portugal.
“These are wines with different and unique characteristics and that’s what makes the Azores and the wines produced in the region stand out. This demonstrates the potential we have,” Filipe Rocha told DI at the time.
“We want to put the Azores on the map in the world of wine and this work has been done in recent years, not only in Pico, but also in Terceira, Graciosa and São Miguel,” he stressed.
In 2022, wine exports in the Azores reached 61,000 liters, the highest figure ever. A decade earlier, according to figures from the Regional Secretariat for Agriculture, exports stood at around 900 liters, while in 2022, exports amounted to 61,902.75 liters.
In 2022, more than three dozen economic agents were registered with the CVR Açores (Azores Regional Wine Commission).

In Diário Insular-José Lourenço, director

Translated to English as a community outreach program from the Portuguese Beyond Borders Institute (PBBI) and the Modern and Classical Languages and Literatures Department (MCLL) as part of Bruma Publication and ADMA (Azores-Diaspora Media Alliance) at California State University, Fresno, PBBI thanks Luso Financial for sponsoring NOVIDADES.