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European Wines

HomeEuropean Wines (Page 7)

  Have you had wine from Kefalonia? If the answer is 'no' then you should try to change that ASAP! I haven't yet been to the island but it is so on my list (right after Paros). And Sarris Winery and the Sarris V for Vostilidi are two of the big reasons why.  Kefalonia (or Cephalonia if you prefer) is one of Greece's Ionian islands. Not just one of actually, it's the largest. It is also home to an ancient wine culture - mentioned in Homer's The Odyssey no less - with not just one but three PDO-level appellations. The island's main claim to wine fame is the grape Robola.

  Some time ago, I wrote a little compilation of Moschofilero tasting notes. My great friend Anna Maria of Unravelling Wine not so subtly commented that I hadn't been drinking the best Moschofilero and suggested I try Troupis Fteri (which I had) and Bosinakis. And when Unravelling Wine tells you to do something, you do it! Bosinakis Winery - Οινοποιία Μποσινάκης Bosinakis Winery is run by the young Sotiris and Katerina Bosinakis. The couple has produced wine since 1992 but it wasn't until 2009 that they entered the bottled wine industry. Still producing at boutique levels, today their PDO Mantineia is one of the most popular Moschofileros on the market. The couple's

  With school bells tolling the end of summer, Robin of Crushed Grape Chronicles has invited the #winepw group to a "back to school" themed Twitter chat on Saturday, September 10. You can read her invitation here and, even if you haven't written a post, follow along with what promises to be several interesting conversations at 11 am EST / 8 am PST by following the hashtag. Everyone in the group this month essentially gets to set their own topic with this theme!  Our challenge, per Robin, is to "put together a fun educational piece to expand your wine knowledge!" Eeek! The pressure! But no, really, the fun! Given the history

  On Crete, the largest of the Greek islands, Lyrarakis Estate has spearheaded the movement to revive one of the island's oldest and rarest grapes: Dafni. Lyrarakis Estate Founded in 1966, family-run Lyrarakis Estate focuses on local, often rare, Cretan varieties. Located in Irakleo (or Heraklion) just east of the island's center, the winery and vineyards sit near the idyllic Lassithi mountains. Here the family has worked hard to revitalize rare grapes like Dafni, Plyto, and Melissaki. And how's this for timely? Lyrarakis Estate was named as one of Wine & Spirits Magazine Top 100 this year! Dafni The grape's name comes from δάφνη, the Greek word for laurel/bay leaf as the wine produced

  Many of us know Grüner Veltliner, or "green Veltliner" Austria's premier white grape; but what do we know about its "red" counterpart, Roter Veltliner? I say "counterpart" but that is rather misleading. Despite the name similarity, the grapes themselves have no relation. Moreover, Roter Veltliner itself is a misleading name because it's not at all red. It's a white grape. Roter Veltliner Unlike my beloved Turkey, Austria is one of those countries that actually has winemaking regulations. Austrian quality wine - by which I mean Qualitätswein - has rules. It doesn't just mean wine that is good, it means wine produced under a designated origin; like Italy's DOC(G), Spain's DOC(a),

  In 1997, the Tsimbidis family founded Monemvasia Winery in Monemvasia, Laconia, Peleponnese. Their goal: to reinvigorate little-known grapes lost in time. The Tsimdibis family took its time with its winery. They devoted their first years to the study of local varieties and experimenting making wines with them. It wasn't until 2005 that they even began to plant. Now, they are the proud growers of a collection of rare varieties, uniquely encompassing Monemvasia*’s terroir over 30 hectares of organic vineyards. *Monemvasia is the name of the winery, a municipality on the east coast of the Peleponnese, a town on a small island off the coast of the Peleponnese, AND a

  Finding Hungarian sparkling wine in Budapest is as easy as hopping in a cab! Located along the Danube on the Buda side of the river lies the neighborhood of Budafolk, an historic center of wine production and cellars. In 1880,  a union of wine producing and bottling industries created a cellar network hollowed out of the limestone beneath the neighborhood. The cellar system, 25 kilometers in length and the largest in all of Europe, still exists earning the area the name “Cellar Town.” Today a number of wineries still have production facilities here, especially those focusing on sparkling wine production like Törley, Sauska, and Garamvári. While I was in

  This March at Oenorama in Athens, my friend Anna Maria of Unravelling Wine and Chania Wine Tours introduced me to the best Vidiano not from Crete. And coming from Crete, she would know. I've had a few Vidiano wines in the past. They've been nice but never done much of anything for me. But I will willingly go where Anna Maria leads so I followed her to the Oenops Wines table where I tasted the best Vidiano not from Crete. Oenops Wines Nikos Karatzas founded Oenops Wines in 2015. While his winery sits in Drama in the eastern part of Macedonia, his grapes come from everywhere. Karatzas tours Greece looking

  Now in its 17th year (or rather having just completed its 17th year), Radici del Sud turns the spotlight on wines from indigenous vines and oils from Puglia, Basilicata, Campania, Calabria, Sicily, Abruzzo, Molise, and Sardegna. Radici del Sud Aside from probably Sicily and even Puglia itself, wines from southern Italy get less attention than those from central and northern Italy. The south has long served as a bulk wine producer for not only Italy but other areas in Europe. However, over the last few decades, producers have shifted from bulk into quality production. As Katarina said in her recent piece, How Radici del Sud Highlights the Potential of Southern Italian Wines,