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Do You Know Sideritis?

 

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I had my first encounter with Sideritis at the Athens wine expo Oenorama a couple years ago. Only two or three examples were available to try at the time, but I’ve since been able to hunt down a few more. Never heard of Sideritis? Not surprising. While it seems to be moving on from ‘rare’ and into ’emerging’, it’s still not something you’ll find on everyone’s list/shelves. 

A pink-skinned grape, Sideritis (Σιδερίτης) can be found in a few different locations around Greece, namely Patras on the Peloponnese peninsula, Central Greece, and in northern Greek in Macedonia. It takes its name from the Greek word ‘sidero’ (iron), referring to the toughness of the grape’s skin. While most often vinified as a white wine, a number of people are making Sideritis with skin contact and those thick skins add a lot of color and tannin (as you’ll see below!). A vigorous variety, vines produce large bunches with large berries. While relatively resistant to drought, this late-ripening variety tends to be sensitive to diseases. It’s wines lean towards medium body with moderate alcohol, fresh acidity, and fruity-floral aromas with spicy notes.

Parparoussis Τα δώρα του Διονύσου Sideritis, 2019

Located in Patras, Parparoussis Winery was one of (perhaps the?) first wineries to make a varietal Sideritis as far back as 1980. A small family winery run by Thanassis Parparoussis (oenologist) and daughters Erifili (viticulture-oenologist), and Dimitra, their primary goal is to promote the Greek indigenous varieties which have unique character.

They produce this wine under PGI Achaia, the most northerly PGI in the Peloponnese, between the Ionian Sea to the west and the Patraic and Corinthian Gulfs to the north. A largely cool growing area thanks to its mountainous nature and Mediterranean (but with cooling sea breezes), Achaia enjoys marked diurnal temperature swings. The PGI allows for the production of white (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet), rosé (dry, semi-dry), red (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet), and both white and rosé sparkling/semi-sparkling (dry, semi-sweet) wines made with a wide variety of grapes including:

White:
Indigenous: Athiri, Assyrtiko, Malagousia, White Muscat, Lagorthi, Roditis, Robola, Sideritis
International: Chardonnay, Riesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Ugni Blanc.

Red:
Indigenous: Mavro Kalavritatino, Mavrodaphni
International: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Grenache Rouge, Merlot, Syrah

The Parparoussis Τα δώρα του Διονύσου (The Gifts of Dionysus) Sideritis is made from grapes coming out of the western part of Achaia from gravel-sand soils with alluvial deposits. Standard white wine making practices, no oak. It poured a brilliant, pale lemon with initially shy aromas of citrus and flowers. A little swirling and time in the glass released white flowers, pink grapefruit, green plum, and white pepper. A crisp wine with medium-low body with 12.5% ABV and zippy acidity. Flavors largely reflected those sensed on the nose but I found the palate to be  predominately floral.

Acheon Sideritis Amphora, 2021

Acheon Winery sits on the slopes of Aigiala in Achaia. Founded by Luke Katsikostas in 1946, Acheon Winery has emphasized  indigenous grape varieties from the Aigiala region’s mountains from the beginning. In 1962, Konstantinos Katsikostas took over the winery from his father, then, in 2004, his children Sosanna and Luke inherited the reins. 

Also a PGI Achaia wine, Acheon aged 30% of this in amphora while the other 70% aged in stainless steel. The resulting wine was wildly different from the Parparoussis (or any other Sideritis I’d had up to that point). A deeper lemon in color, the nose expressed intense, “exotic” citrus aromas including yuzu, limequat, and rangpur lime along with a quicksilver thread of rock salt. The palate presented dry and textured with vibrant acidity. Only 12% ABV but the wine leaned firmly in the medium-bodied zone thanks to that textured quality. Flavors reminiscent of the nose but more orange-colored citrus flavors like tangerine and kumquat. It had that salty tang as well but not briny-salty like a Santorini Assyrtiko, more earthy-salty. 

A really cool wine – my favorite of the three.

Tetramythos Sideritis Natur, 2022

Tetramythos Winery I learned about from friends who live in Athens. Her family is originally from Kalavryta in the northern area of the Peloponnese and they discovered this winery on a trip to their village. It’s a small-batch winery making wine with organic grapes started in the late 90s by siblings Aristos and Stathis Spanos and oenologist Panayiotis Papagiannopoulos.

Unlike the previous two wines, the Tetramythos Sideritis comes from the PGI Peloponnese. As its name suggests, this PGI covers the entirety of the Peloponnese peninsula including: Argolida, Arkadia, Achaia, Ilia (Elis), Korinthia, Lakonia, and Messinia making it Greece’s largest and most productive wine region. Predominantly mountainous with more than 50 mountains with an altitude exceeding 1,000 m. Additionally, large swaths of the peninsula sit on the sea. The combination of different topographies, elevation, and proximity to the sea, results in a wide variety of terroir available.

Allowable grapes for the PGI are even more varied than the terroir. They can be made into white (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet), red (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet), rosé (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet, sweet), and white sparkling/semi-sparling (dry, semi-dry, semi-sweet).

White indigenous grapes: Aidani Aspro, Athiri, Asproudes, Assyrtiko, Kydonitsa, Lagorthi, Malagousia, Monemvasia, Moschato Aspro, Moschofilero, Petroulianos, Roditis, Robola, Rokaniaris, Savatiano, Sideritis, Skiadopoulo

International grapes: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Arintho, Viognier, Riesling, Gewurtztraminer, Ugni Blanc

Red indigenous grapes: Agiorgitiko, Augοustiatis, Voidomatis, Volitsa, Mavri Thrapsa, Kolliniatiko, Mandilaria, Mavro Kalavrytino, Mavrodaphni, Mavroudi, Mavroudia, Skylopnichtis, Fokiano, Chondromavro Kalavrytino, Psilomavro Kalavrytino

International grapes: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Grenache Rouge, Merlot, Tempranillo, Mourvedre, Carignan, Syrah, Refosco

Tetramythos’s Sideritis grapes come from a vineyard in the seaside Aigialeia region where the 50+ year old vines grow in traditional pergolas. Harvest in late, in mid-November, Papagiannopoulos macerated the juice for five days on the skins giving the wine a deep orange – Dr. Watson color. An intense nose with orange peel, hay and dried wild flowers, laurel, and quince paste. Medium-bodied and tannic with 12% ABV, and medium acidity. A musky floral backbreath preceded by a journey of stone fruit, peach Jolly Rancher, and tangerine was enjoyed best at room temperature or just above.

 

*Cover photo courtesy of WinesofGreece.org