From an underwater laboratory to a winery with a name of its own

Crusoe Treasure is the world’s first underwater winery and artificial reef. We age wine 20 metres below the surface in Plentzia Bay (Bizkaia) and, since 2024, we have had a new winery and artificial reef at a depth of around 28 metres, off Punta Galea. Since 2026, you can visit us at our showroom in Getxo Marina.

We didn’t start out as a winery. We began with a question that had been on our minds for some time: why are bottles found in shipwrecks so well preserved—and sometimes better than those kept on land? To find out, we set up a laboratory on the seabed. Twenty years on, here’s what happened in between.

2006–2011: LSEB Plentzia, the laboratory that started it all

In 2006, we launched LSEB Plentzia, the Underwater Beverage Ageing Laboratory. It was the world’s first underwater laboratory dedicated to studying how beverages evolve beneath the surface. Borja Saracho’s idea was easy to explain and difficult to put into practice, and the first thing we learned was patience: simply securing permission to install it took two years, until 2008.

Between 2008 and 2009, under Borja’s direction, we brought together biologists, engineers, winemakers, telecommunications experts and professional divers to design the laboratory. We set ourselves three conditions: protect the bottles, avoid pollution and make the structures a home for marine life.

In 2010, we lowered the first MEC (Monitoring, Ageing and Control) modules to the seabed in the bay. They carried sensors and cameras that sent data to the surface in real time. A 12-month study began that September, and Antena 3 was the first television channel to come and report on it.

We didn’t just put wine down there. We also tested beer and cider, along with different corks, closures, labels and bottle types, to see what could withstand the sea and what couldn’t. Some experimental products had to reach consumers to complete the studies, so we numbered each bottle to track it. We still number them one by one today.

In September 2011, after a year beneath the Cantábrico, we uncorked beverages from 27 wineries representing 14 Designations of Origin. The results convinced us that the sea brought something that couldn’t be achieved on land. That November, we registered the Crusoe Treasure brand: the castaway from the novel and the treasure the sea keeps in its shipwrecks.

2012–2016: the first wines, the presentation case and the medals

In 2012, we expanded the reef with eight new structures at the same site, with production for sale already in mind. In December, we brought our first wine up from the water: Crusoe Treasure Classic 2010. Tempranillo, mazuelo and graciano, aged for one year in American oak barrels and another beneath the sea. We made 3,200 numbered bottles.

We wanted opening the box to feel like finding a treasure. So each bottle came in a chest-shaped case, accompanied by a book, a small hammer and a certificate bearing its number. The case won the Gold Medal for Best Packaging at the Best Pack awards at Barcelona’s Alimentaria trade fair. That same year, our brand identity won a Silver Sun at El Sol, the Ibero-American Festival of Advertising Communication. We were also chosen to represent Spain at the SIAL d’Or innovation competition in Paris, where we came second.

In 2013, Crusoe Treasure Passion 2011 arrived: 100% tempranillo, with 5,560 numbered bottles. It was also the year we signed an agreement with the University of Alicante to study the winery’s marine biology, and the year our audiovisual communication won bronze at the Laus Awards, organised by ADG-FAD.

In 2014, the Basque Government gave us its Tourism Innovation Promotion Award. Then, in 2016, we went head-to-head with wines from around the world in international competitions:

• Challenge International du Vin (Bordeaux): Silver Medal for Crusoe Treasure Classic 2010.
• International Wine & Spirit Competition (London): Bronze Medals for Classic 2010 and Passion 2011.

Meanwhile, the reef was quietly getting on with its own work. Before we arrived, currents in the estuary turned the sandy seabed to stone every few months, leaving little able to live there. The structures provided a stable surface, and today we count more than 1,500 species. We’ve even found shark eggs attached to them.

2017–2023: a growing range, the first conference and international press

In 2017, the documentary «Soul» took our story to the Berlin International Film Festival. The following year, we added the Sea Soul range to our reds, including an Albariño from Rías Baixas, among others, and grew from 7,000 bottles in 2017 to around 20,000. A report by the AFP news agency made headlines around the world, appearing everywhere from the South China Morning Post to El Mundo and France’s L’Expansion. That same year, we welcomed El País, El Español and The Guardian.

On 12 and 13 December 2019, we organised the world’s first conference on underwater winemaking at Itsasmuseum in Bilbao. More than 50 winemakers, winery owners and experts attended, and we spent the second day in Plentzia, beside the winery. British magazine Decanter covered the event. That year, we also appeared on Euronews and NBC.

2020 began well, with a Fox News report for US audiences, and then took a very difficult turn. The pandemic cost us some international distributors and importers, which closed down. We went through a genuinely hard time. We responded by opening online sales on our own website, which is now an important part of how we reach people.

Then came years of intense media attention:

• 2021: Decanter and Germany’s Vinum explored why wineries age wine beneath the sea. The Guardian, El Mundo and Condé Nast Traveler covered us too.
• 2022: A Euronews report was published everywhere from Belgium to Taiwan. German broadcaster WDR, National Geographic and EITB came to visit.
• 2023: National Geographic recommended Plentzia for its beaches and submerged winery. The Japanese edition of Esquire wrote about the taste of underwater wine, and La 2, RTVE’s second channel, featured us in a programme about sustainability.

2024–2026: a second reef, sparkling wine and Getxo

In 2024, we built a new artificial reef off Punta Galea, at a depth of around 28 metres. It serves as both a reef and a winery. El Economista described the seabed as a new frontier for viticulture, while Deia revealed what we were working on.

It was sparkling wine. In 2025, we brought up our first bottle with its second fermentation completed beneath the sea, after almost two years underwater. Antena 3 and COPE came to see it; COPE called us the underwater cathedral of wine in Euskadi.

In 2026, we opened Crusoe Treasure’s new space and showroom at Getxo Marina, covering nearly 1,000 m². Visits depart from here, tastings are held here, and visitors can get a close-up look at what we do underwater. That January, La Vanguardia published another feature on our wines from the Cantábrico.

Twenty years after receiving our first permit, we’re still doing what we did at the beginning: going down, measuring, tasting and coming back up with something worth opening.

Crusoe Treasure timeline at a glance

Year	What happened
2006–2008	LSEB Plentzia is founded; two years spent securing installation permission
2008–2009	Laboratory designed under the direction of Borja Saracho
2010	First MEC modules installed at 20 m in Plentzia Bay
2011	Tasting of wines from 27 wineries and 14 D.O.s after a year beneath the sea; the brand is born
2012	Eight new structures; first wine, Classic 2010 (3,200 bottles)
2013	Passion 2011 (5,560 bottles); agreement with the University of Alicante
2014	Basque Government award for tourism innovation
2016	Silver in Bordeaux and bronze in London
2017	“Soul” documentary at the Berlinale
2018	Sea Soul range; around 20,000 bottles a year
2019	First World Congress on Underwater Winemaking, in Bilbao
2020	Pandemic; online sales begin
2024	New winery reef at Punta Galea, at a depth of around 28 m
2025	First sparkling wine with a second fermentation under the sea
2026	Showroom of nearly 1,000 m² at Getxo Marina

Awards

Year	Award	For
2012	Best Pack, Alimentaria (Barcelona)	Gold Medal for Best Packaging
2012	El Sol, Ibero-American Festival of Advertising Communication (Bilbao)	Silver Sol for branding
2012	SIAL d'Or (Paris)	Second place, representing Spain
2012	Impact Weekend, Instituto de Empresa (Madrid)	Finalist project
2013	Laus Awards, ADG-FAD	Bronze, audiovisual category
2014	Trade and Tourism Awards, Basque Government	Promoting Tourism Innovation
2016	Challenge International du Vin (Bordeaux)	Silver, Classic 2010
2016	International Wine & Spirit Competition (London)	Bronze, Classic 2010 and Passion 2011
2016	Hemendik Sariak, Deia newspaper	Eskuinaldea Award

Frequently asked questions about Crusoe Treasure and underwater wine

What is an underwater winery?

It is a winery that ages bottles on the seabed rather than in a warehouse or cave. In our case, the bottles rest at a depth of 20 metres in Plentzia Bay and around 28 metres off Punta Galea, in structures that also serve as artificial reefs.

Where is Crusoe Treasure?

The winery is underwater, off the coast of Bizkaia, between Plentzia and Getxo. The showroom and starting point for visits are at Getxo Marina, near Bilbao.

How long has it been around?

The project began in 2006 with the LSEB Plentzia laboratory. The first modules were installed in 2010, the brand was launched in November 2011, and the first wine, Classic 2010, was brought up from the sea in December 2012.

What wines and awards does it have?

The first wines were Crusoe Treasure Classic 2010 and Passion 2011, Tempranillo reds. Classic 2010 won silver at the Challenge International du Vin in Bordeaux in 2016, and both wines won bronze at the International Wine & Spirit Competition in London that year. The Sea Soul range followed, and in 2025 came the first sparkling wine with a second fermentation under the sea.

Is it legal to age wine at sea?

Yes, with the appropriate permits. We were the first underwater wineries in the world with a 500 m2 reef under the sea, a legal concession and health registration. Obtaining the first permit alone took us two years.

Does it affect the seabed?

For the better, based on what we’ve seen. The structures provide stable ground in an area where currents used to constantly shift the seabed, and today the reef is home to more than 1,500 species.

Can it be visited?

Yes. We organise tastings on board above the winery and guided dives, departing from Getxo. Bookings can be made on our website.

Sources

• LSEB Plentzia, Underwater Beverage Ageing Laboratory
• Awards and recognition for Crusoe Treasure
• Crusoe Treasure in the media
• Decanter: First underwater wine congress celebrated in Bilbao
• Moodie Davitt Report: Discovering the underwater world of Crusoe Treasure
• Basque Tourism: Crusoe Treasure, the winery beneath the sea