Surprisingly to many, wine making in Lebanon is nothing new.
The cultivation of the vine goes back to the Phoenicians who traded their wines along the Mediterranean trade routes, introducing viniculture into many parts of southern Europe.
Some centuries later, the Romans chose Baalbek in the east of Lebanon as the site to build the Temple of Bacchus as their tribute to the god of wine, a Temple which still stands today.
Chateau Musar, founded in 1930 by Gaston Hochar in an 18th century castle, is located in Ghazir, 15 miles north of Beirut. Following an expansion of the cellar in the late 1950's, Chateau Musar is now able to store more than one million bottles of wine.
Still a family concern, Chateau Musar is owned by Gaston Hochar's two sons, Serge and Ronald. While taking over the role of wine maker in 1959, the eldest son, Serge, studied oenology at the University of Bordeaux.
Ronald, the younger of the two brothers, has degrees in Law and Political Science. He is in charge of the marketing and finances of Chateau Musar.
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