I hear the expression "heroic winemaking" more & more these days & each time I think of Lebanon's #Massaya located in the Bekaa Valley, smack in the middle of a zone where travel is advised against by most western governments due to high risk of attacks by Islamist extremist groups (http://bit.ly/1wTIqPT).

Here is the work of a man, Sami Ghosn (on the right in the photo), in love with the land of his childhood who decided to fight incredible odds & revive the family war-ravaged land back to life.

#Massaya’s Tanaïl Estate is located at an altitude of 1000 meters above sea level in the valley, its slopes protected by Mount Lebanon & the Anti-Lebanon mountains.

The Beqaa (Bekaa) Valley is the wine powerhouse of Lebanon, where all major Lebanese wineries have their vineyards, including Chateau Ksara (Lebanon’s largest winery with over 60% of the country's production), Château Kefraya, Cave Kouroum, Château Musar & of course, the trendy boutique winery of Château Massaya.

Vines in Beqaa Valley are grown at a high altitude of around 1,000m, & benefit from a unique micro-climate of dry summers, cool nights, & much rainfall in winter & spring. Harvest is typically in the middle of September (much later than other southern Mediterranean vineyards).

French influences on the wines of Beqaa (& Lebanon in general) are evident in the make-up of the vineyard; included are Cinsault, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Mourvèdre, Grenache, Syrah, Carignan.

All perfect for viticulture and it is not surprising that the Romans built there (in Baalbek) the temple of Bacchus, the Roman good of wine, still one of the best preserved Roman temples in the world & today a World Heritage Site...

Photos were taken by myself when we traveled there in January 2012...