The UMA tastes 22 wines from the Axarquía to study underwater ageing

Topics Universidad de Málaga

The SEJ-121 research group of the University of Málaga brought together 32 professionals from the sector in a comparative tasting of 22 wines from the Axarquía, half kept in the winery and half submerged, to analyse the differences between both forms of conservation.

Raquel J. V. · Published on October 16, 2026 at 19:52

The University of Málaga (UMA) held a research day on Wednesday, October 14, on submerged wines, a practice that consists of preserving wine under the sea. The activity, carried out by the SEJ-121 research group under the direction of professor Gorka Zamarreño Aramendia, took place at the Enogastronomic Laboratory of the Faculty of Tourism and brought together 32 participants, including winemakers, sommeliers, wine specialists, product prescribers and institutional representatives.

A tasting of 22 wines

The core of the day was a comparative tasting of 22 wines from the Axarquía: 11 kept in the winery and 11 submerged. The aim was to study the possible sensory differences between both conservation conditions. Representatives of Bodega Fabio Coullet, Bodegas Almijara, Bodega y Viñedos de la Axarquía, Bodegas Muñoz Cabrera and Bodegas Bentomiz took part in the tasting, together with members of the Asociación de Sumilleres de Málaga. The serving of the wines was handled by students from the Escuela de Hostelería La Cónsula.

From sensory analysis to the laboratory

During the day, samples were collected from the wines tasted and will be analysed at the Servicios Centrales de Apoyo a la Investigación (SCAI) of the UMA. That second phase will make it possible to compare the impressions from the tasting with analytical evidence. According to the principal investigator, Gorka Zamarreño Aramendia, the experience "surprised above all for the apparent evolution of the submerged sweet wines", an observation that will have to be examined in the following phases of the study. The purpose of the research is not to demonstrate in advance that submerged wines are of higher quality, but to determine whether there are objective differences compared with those kept in the winery, what their scope is and what relevance they may have from the oenological and sensory point of view.

Collaboration with the sector

The day was attended by Jorge Martín, president of the Mancomunidad de Municipios de la Costa del Sol Axarquía, and by Leonor García-Agua, director of Sabor a Málaga and chief of staff of the Vicepresidencia de la Diputación Provincial de Málaga. The activity was presented by the dean of the Faculty of Tourism, Antonio Peláez Verdet. The SEJ-121 group already presented in September of this year the 'Vinos Sumergidos' project, a research study that examines the changes in the conservation under the sea of 160 bottles of wine from six wineries in the Axarquía, with the collaboration of Sabor a Málaga, the Mancomunidad de la Costa del Sol Axarquía and the wineries themselves.