Datça Vineyard and Winery
Datça Vineyard and Winery, conveniently located on the same named peninsula in southern Turkey, is a small, family-run winery. Here they make wine for the love of it but are perfectly poised to take advantage of the tourist rich area.
The Datça Peninsula
Located along the Aegean coast between famous resort areas of Bodrum and Fethiye, the Datça (dat-cha) Peninsula is a long, narrow peninsula that is a combination of fjords and beaches, uninhabited mountains, and fertile plains and valleys. Easily accessed via a picturesque (albeit long) drive from the mainland or regular ferries from Bodrum, the area offers a fair amount of attractive activities for tourists. Beaches, a charming old town, and city center offering high-end restaurants and shops where local artisans ply their skill lure visitors from the more tourist-trap feeling of the nearby resort towns. The area is also home to the ancient Greek port town of Knidos (or Cnidos). Antiquities from the city can be seen in museums around the world, including the famous Lion of Knidos at the British Museum.
Sharing a Love of Wine
Winemaking in Turkey is neither a money making nor a certain business. Government restrictions aside, wine culture in Turkey is nearly non existent and the local market gravitates far more towards beer and rakı. For the İşleyicis though, it seemed a great shame to waste the vast array of grapes, climates, and soil types that make the country so perfect for wine.
In 2011 the İşleyici family purchased a floundering winery and renamed it for the peninsula. Inspired by the history of wine and winemaking , they built Datça Vineyard and Winery as a place where they could share their passion for wine with like-minded people. Indeed, the winery offers more than the friendly tasting room and cellar inside a charming reproduction of the peninsula’s famous windmills. Here you can attend wine appreciation seminars, food and wine pairing events, participate in the harvest, and more.
The winery offers five labels starting with the entry level wines simply called The Blends; Silenus, named for the tutor and companion of Dionysus; Cnidus as a nod to the peninsula’s history; a honey sweetened white wine; and a gold medal-winning, limited production grand reserve wine.
Datça’s Silenus and Cnidus Wines
The Silenus Chardonnay is a medium-bodied wine with mid-palate weight, rather high acid, and 13% abv. Aged in French oak, the resulting aromas overwhelm the nose and subsume the baked apples and spices. Flavors on the palate are more redemptive with the oak influence being less obvious, allowing the apple and stone fruit flavors to shine a little more. 
Oddly enough, it was the Silenus Öküzgözü Rosé (2017) that first attracted me to Datça’s wines. Rather alarmingly pink in color, I have seldom experiences a rosé that so well maintains the character of the grape. The nose is redolent with muddled strawberries, raspberries, and hops. Anyone who assumes all rosés are on the sweet side needs to try this one. Bone dry, lively acid, and bright pomegranate an berry flavors make for a aperitif or summer sipper.
The Cnidus line showcases four oak-aged red wines with moderate (13%) alcohol. The Cnidus Merlot (2015) is an elegant, medium-bodied wine with mulberry, green pepper, spice, and cinnamon aromas. A soft, velvety mouthfeel carries flavors reflective of the nose and with an earthy finish.
The only blend in the line, the Cnidus Öküzgözü-Boğazkere (2014) features the two most common native black varietals. And intriguing blend of damson plums, violets, moss, and forest floor draws you in. Unfortunately the palate doesn’t deliver the promise of the nose. Something of a cliffhanger I was left wanting a lot more here.
The 2014 Cabernet Sauvignon walked away with several awards including the IWSC Silver in 2016
and an IWC commendation the same year. Black fruit aromas mingle with leather, coffee, and spice on the nose. Round tannins build on the intensity of black cherry and spice flavors but taper off to a stemmy finish.
The final wine of the Cnidus series, a 2013 Syrah also garnered a medal from the IWSC in 2016, this time a bronze. Rich bramble fruits, black peppercorn, and green bell linger on the nose. I found this to be really pretty mellow for a Syrah. A nice change of pace, allowing one to enjoy the wine rather than be attacked by what can often be a rather aggressive grape in Turkey.