What’s brewing?
A trip round the Keo brewery offers a tour of the senses

A trip to Limassol is not complete unless you’ve visited the Keo Brewery just beyond the Old Port. They have a daily tour around the plant which finishes in the tasting room - I think everyone agrees that’s the best part of the tour.
Best of all it’s free and a number 30 bus drops you right outside the door. It is advisable not to take the car! The tour starts at 10am, however you need to be there ten minutes earlier to sign in the visitor book.

The first stop is at the beer house, where there are enormous vats, and a guide outlines some of the history of Keo. The building now housing the winery was built in 1927, the year Keo was established. In 1996 the buildings were restorated and expanded, giving the winery its present form. Keo has 50 hectares planted with grape vines around the island. Cyprus is the home of some of the oldest grape varieties in the world and Keo produces wines from these varieties, continuing a 5,000 year heritage and tradition in wine making.
Your visit could coincide with the delivery of grapes. It’s interesting to see them being dropped into big concrete baths and watch the grapes being pressed mechanically, the smell is amazing.

Next it’s the wine vaults where St. John Commandaria is produced. This unique wine is made from some of the oldest grapes in the world. It was named Commandaria by the knights of St. John, who made it famous throughout the kingdoms of Europe during the Crusades.

The grapes come from the denominated area of Commandaria on the eastern slopes of Troodos, making it and “Appelation of origin” wine. The Mavro and Xynisteri grapes are hand picked and left to dry in the sun until the water evaporates and the sugar is concentrated inside the berries. The grapes are then pressed and the resultant syrup-like juice is left to ferment naturally in traditional wooden vats.

This sweet amber wine has a powerful aroma of dried apricots and spice with underlying smoky oak. You get to sample it too in the tasting room.
There’s also the visit to the bottling plant, where bottles wind their way along a conveyor belt making a phenomenal noise. The empty bottles are checked for faults by hand, then filled, labelled and corked. It’s amazing how quick the process is.

It isn’t a long tour and after thirty or so minutes you’re in the tasting room. Tables are set out with a selection of their wines such as Aphrodite, St. Panteleimon, Othello, Ktima etc. They always have choice of white, red and ros?. Bottles of Keo beer, crisps are also laid on and they’ll supply juice for the non drinkers! There is also the opportunity to buy wines etc at discount price from the shop. All good fun but you’ll certainly need a siesta in the afternoon.