PRESS RELEASE BY THE OFFICE OF THE SPEAKER 8,000 years back — from temples to philosophers, to our tables and feasts — Speaker of the House of Representatives

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Anġlu Farrugia, officially opened a wine exhibition in the Parliament of Malta, describing wine as a product as ancient as civilisation itself. In his address, he recalled that the earliest evidence of wine goes back some 8,000 years, to the valleys of Georgia and Mesopotamia, where humans first transformed the humble grape into something more enduring. Since then, wine has travelled with us through history, poured in the temples of the Egyptians, praised by Greek philosophers, and honoured in Roman feasts.

The Speaker noted that here in Malta, wine has also been part of our story for centuries. The Phoenicians and Romans cultivated vines on our islands, and today our wine industry has become a symbol of resilience and creativity. Maltese wine does not only accompany our meals; it carries the taste of our soil, our climate, and our culture. He added that in recent years Malta has also begun exporting its wines abroad, offering international markets a unique Mediterranean expression — one that is small in scale but rich in character.

Speaker Farrugia underlined that Parliament's role in opening its doors to such an exhibition is to reaffirm that it is not only a legislative chamber but also a national home for culture, dialogue, and identity.  Speaker Farrugia concluded by stating that we should not see wine solely a product of agriculture or gastronomy, but also a reflection of humanity's long journey — from the first vineyards thousands of years ago, to the bottles we open today in friendship, culture, and joy.