More than most places, Mallorca means different things to different people. For many the Spanish island is synonymous with the endless trinity of sun, sea, and sangria, since it virtually invented European beach tourism in the early 20th century. In 1929, Gertrude Stein wrote to her war-traumatized friend the novelist Robert Graves, recommending Mallorca as the perfect place to downshift and de-stress. (“It’s paradise,” she suggested, adding the biting qualifier, “if you can stand it.”) But as the popularity of the island soared, its culture became ever more marginal. Traditional farming and cooking almost withered on the vine. (The vines themselves also withered, as ancient grape varieties including Manto Negro and Callet were pushed aside to make way for Cabernet Sauvignon and Chardonnay.)
When I first came here, in the 1980s,…
You're reading a preview of
Conde Nast Traveler (Digital) - 1 Issue, January/February 2021