Lyrarakis Wines Reviving Crete
I was lucky enough to visit Crete a couple years ago. Unfortunately for my friends and I, we experienced one of the worst Decembers the island had seen in years. While we had a few moments of clear skies, driving rains, lower than normal temperatures, and high winds did not create an overly welcoming atmosphere in Chania. Nor did the earthquake. But there was wine! And, thanks to my friend Anna Maria of Chania Wine Tours, we got a fantastic look into Cretan wines.
Crete is really exciting place for wine lovers right now. Not only is the island home to a kind of surprising number of native grapes (given that it is an island and all), but there are also so many emerging varieties. It is thanks to wineries like Lyrarakis Wines that a lot of unloved and nearly lost grapes are being reintroduced to the market. Brothers Manolis and Sotiris Lyrarakis established their winery in 1966. Now run by the family’s second generation, the family has devoted itself to the revival of rare, local varieties. The winery’s portfolio features more than 11 indigenous varieties, three of which it saved from extinction: Dafni, Plyto, and Melissaki.
At the same time that the Lyrarakis family investigates Crete for rare varieties to save, they’re also helping save the planet through advocacy of sustainability and regenerative farming. Since 2020, the winery has been fully organic and convinced a significant percentage of its cooperating farmers to also make the transition. As part of their regenerative approach, they have stopped ploughing and only use fertilizer made of organic waste from their kitchen, the winemaking process, and the nearby oil mills. They plant new vineyards at higher altitudes and have replaced previous wire trellising systems to the lyre system to address climate change issues. Every year, as part of their Message-In-A-Bottle project, the family evaluates and publicizes the winery and the farmers they work with for their water, soil, pest and ecosystem management, air quality and community impact.
Lyrarakis Wines Vilana, PGI Crete
The Lyrarakis Wines Vilana comes from the winery’s “Queens” line, an appropriate name for what has been one of Crete’s key white grapes. Naturally high in alcohol, Vilana does best at elevation which enables it to better retain freshness to balance the alcohol. It needs to be monitored carefully in the vineyard though as it is sensitive to mildews and botrytis.
Lyrarakis’s Vilana vineyards are 30+ year old bush vines that grow at 600-650 meters. After destemming, the grapes spend 8 hours in a cold soak before fermentation then malolactic fermentation/conversion prior to bottling. Aromas of yellow fruit and orange peel mingled with sweet hay and chrysanthemum on the nose. Medium-bodied with a round and creamy mouthfeel supported by nice acidity. Ripe pears and citrus echoed from the nose and led to a floral, almost Easter lily finish.
Lyrarakis Wines Psarades Dafni, PGI Crete
Lyrarakis first planted Plyto in their Psarades vineyard in 1992. The vineyard sits at 480 meters. Dafni is a vigorous and high-yielding variety making attention to vines during the growing season with activities such as green-harvesting and pruning, vital. Working in their favor though, is the grape’s hardy character. Thick skins give it resistance to drought and fungal diseases. Dafne does not reach full ripeness until late in the season and is often harvested as late as October. The grape takes its name from the Greek word for ‘laurel’, a nod to its distinctly herbal aroma profile.
Much like the thought they put into rescuing this grape, Lyrarakis put a lot of thought into the wine itself. First, 5% of the juice in the wine came from early harvested grapes which fermented separately from the remaining 95% and that spent 10 hours macerating on the skins. After both batches fermented, the wine aged on the lees for four months before bottling.
I had some mild concern when I opened the bottle because the cork was iffy. Happily, no harm to the wine! It poured a bright, clean, golden color. Hahaha, my original notes for this say “oooo”. The wine had a rich and fruity character with mineral and cool mint details wrapped around a core of pear, pear blossom, and kumquat with a floral finish. Round and mouth filling with a medium-long finish, it paired especially well with Comté, almonds, rosemary, and goat gouda with honey (but not without the honey).
Lyrarakis Wines, Gero-Deti Melissaki, PGI Crete
Melissaki is Lyrarakis’s latest project, having planted their Gero Deti vineyards with it in 2010. The vineyard, in central Crete, sits at 480 meters in loam soil and is not irrigated.
Some really interesting winemaking went into this bottle. Lyrarakis harvested twice, once at the end of August, then again after the first week of September. The grapes macerated on their skins in second-use 400 liter French oak barrels for 12 days. Fermentation on wild yeasts followed by malolactic fermentation followed by two months of oak ageing before being bottled unfiltered.
Golden in the glass, this textured white showed an herbal character, with citrus detail and notes of marjoram framing a core of Bosch pear and orange flavors with firm acidity.
Lyrarakis Wines Psarades Plyto, PGI Iraklion
Dafni and Plyto, now well-known Cretan varieties, were first planted in 1992 in “Psarades” family vineyard.
Lyrarakis has some older bush vines of Plyto, but its newer plantings, begun in 1992 in the family’s Psarades vineyard, are trained in the more modern wire and VSP system. Plyto is a vigorous variety that prefers clay-loam soils and has good resistance to dry conditions. The large bunches however, are susceptible to downy mildew and botrytis bunch rot.
Similar to the Melissaki, Lyrarakis did two harvests for this Plyto in order to capture different organoleptic characteristics at two stages of maturation, followed by classic white wine fermentation.
Its wines are light-bodied with moderate alcohol, mouthwatering acidity
Pale lemon and aromatic with aromas of freshly grated lemon peel over white peaches. Light-bodied with vibrant acidity, the palate burst with more lemon and peach flavors, shot through with a streak of minerality.
I have a bottle of the Lyrarakis Wines Thrapsathiri and am looking forward to opening it soon!
I’ve been inspired for some years now by Greek wine. This country-wide renewal in interest of native varieties (beyond Assyrtiko, Agiorgitiko, and Xinomavro) is to be both commended and hopefully emulated elsewhere. It also motivated me to create The Quick & Dirty Guide to Greek Wine! I’ve nearly finished the book, be on the lookout for it soon!
Coming Soon!
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