Camilleri Wines is paying tribute to Malta’s national tree currently listed as in danger of extinction, the Sandarac Gum tree more commonly known as is-Sigra ta’ l-Gharghar. It is doing this with the production of a limited edition wine called Mystic Araar, a blend of Syrah, Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

The production run of Mystic Araar, vintage 2006 is of 2400 magnums (1.5 litre bottles) and this will not be on sale but will be used by the winery to distribute on a complimentary basis.

“This is our tribute to an endangered tree and our initiative will seek to raise awareness in favour of the protection of our national tree,” states Claudio Camilleri, head Sales and Marketing of Camilleri Wines. “We are

promoting the importance of safeguarding our environment and we are doing this by creating an interesting blend presented in Magnum version. We are proud of our heritage and through this initiative we are using Maltese wine to promote the protection of an indigenous Maltese tree.”

“Our tribute however is extending itself beyond the production of this exclusive wine. In fact, we have decided to participate in the 34U campaign with the planting of fifty Sandarac gum trees which will be planted by our staff at the Royal Malta Golf Club in Marsa, an area that is surrounded with industry where all the trees that have been planted on the site since the late 1970’s are providing a green lung to all the neighbouring towns. In fact, the trees were donated to the Royal Malta Golf Club thanks to an arrangement reached between Camilleri Wines and the Malta Golf Association and Camilleri Wines is committing itself to plant fifty trees a year for the coming three years,” announced Mr Camilleri.

A spokesperson for the 34U Campaign stated that the site earmarked for this planting is short of approximately 2000 trees and everything that can be done to increase the density of the trees in the area would be beneficial to surrounding towns and their citizens in general and to the sports enthusiasts enjoying the facilities at Marsa. Together with the already present number of Eucalyptus trees in the area, the planned planting of Gharghar trees can form part of an extensive replacement and replanting programme.

The Sigra ta’ l-Gharghar is a medium-sized evergreen tree that may reach heights as much as 15 metres. Its delicate branches are covered with small scale-like leaves arranged in four rows. The tree grows especially on slopes of coralline limestone, however it is nowadays a very rare tree with wild specimens occurring in very few localities such as il-Maqluba in Qrendi and Mellieha. It was declared as Malta’s National Tree in 1992.

“This is the first time that Camilleri Wines is embarking on this tree-planting project in favour of a better and healthier community and we encourage other companies and organizations to follow suit in the drive to ensure the survival of our National Tree,” concluded Mr Camilleri.