Gianaclis: Egypt's Delta Winery and Its Alexandria Traces

Gianaclis is the wine house of Heineken's Egyptian company, and the house dates its vineyards from 1882. Its cellar, where the owner says about 100 people work, is in Gianaclis village near Abu al-Matamir, in Beheira in the western Nile Delta, 45 km from central Alexandria. There are no walk-in visits: the visits on record were booked coach days from Cairo, and today's dates and prices come only on request, from the owner's customer line 19347. On your own in Alexandria it costs nothing or the price of a bottle: read the house's old two-language sign, find its Bobal red, a grape from Spain, on a shop shelf, and stand in the quarter named Gianaclis.

What to do there

3 things to do

1. 1 Read the Two Names on the Vineyard Sign History · Free

   Free, from the pavement: the house name in two languages.

   A wine house's name over a city shop.

   Where: Al Ghorfa Al Togaria Street in central Alexandria, a green-marble corner shopfront.

   What: find the house name written twice, "كروم جناكليس" in Arabic and "VIGNOBLE GIANACLIS" in French, and photograph it. The cellar it names is not in Alexandria: it works in Gianaclis village, Abu al-Matamir, Beheira, 45 km south in a straight line.

   How: free, any time; the shutters may be down.

   Backup: none needed, the sign is seen from the street.

   Log Memory
2. 2 Find the Spanish Grape Behind Omar Khayyam Wine · Price: low

   Two labels, as the house lists them, 170 m up the street.

   Before the bottle, the old wine of this coast: Strabo wrote that on Lake Mareia, south of Alexandria, "the Mareotic wine is racked off with a view to ageing it".

   Where: the Drinkies shop on the same street, 170 m from the sign; Drinkies is the owner's own retail chain.

   What: find Omar Khayyam Red. The house lists it as Bobal, origin Egypt; Bobal is native to the Utiel-Requena region of Valencia, Spain. Then find a Château de Granville bottle, which the house lists with origin France. Buying is optional; the task is the two labels.

   How: hours are not published; liquor shops can be ordered shut on Islamic holy days.

   Backup: the Drinkies on Mohamed Shafik Ghorbal Street, Ibrahimiya. Hotel guests in Cairo find Omar Khayyam Red on the in-room wine list of the Four Seasons Hotel Cairo at Nile Plaza.

   Log Memory
3. 3 Weigh Two Namesakes at Gianaclis Station History · Free

   One quarter, two men called Gianaclis, and a clue in a will.

   Where: Gianaclis Station Street in Ramleh, at the tram stop.

   What: two stories name this quarter. An encyclopedia says Nestor Gianaclis, the founder. Arabic press says Nicola Pierakos, "known as Gianaclis", an owner of vineyards and distilleries; in 1948 a Greek businessman, Nicola Biyarkos, known in Egypt as Gianaclis, built a palace with 366 windows within the vineyards at Abu al-Matamir. Then the clue: the founder's will named his niece, "wife of Pierrakos", as his heir. Decide which story you believe.

   How: free, any time. The Raml tram has been stopped for rebuilding since 1 April 2026: come by taxi or the replacement minibuses.

   Backup: none needed, a public street.

   Log Memory

Insider tips

• Do not drive to the cellar gate: it is a working plant with no walk-in visits. Ask the owner's line, 19347, whether a coach day from Cairo is running, what it costs and who may join.

• The vines are not at the cellar: the winemaker said in 2015 that they were replanted in 1999 about 150 km away, and rows show along the Cairo–Alex desert road from about 50 km out of Cairo.

• The Raml tram has been stopped for rebuilding since 1 April 2026; take a taxi between the Alexandria stops.

• Read the back label: the house lists Omar Khayyam Red as Bobal, a grape native to Valencia in Spain, and Château de Granville as wine from France.