For years I'd wanted to visit Santorini. All the beautiful pictures you see, the wine
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For August, Robin from Crushed Grape Chronicles has challenged the #WinePW crew to find "unexpected white wine pairings". More than just food though, Robin has opened this event up to pairing wine with books, moves, music
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Markogianni was not a winery with which I was familiar. A friend recommended this wine and, really, as soon as I saw the label, I was sold. Vorias (Βορέας) god of the north wind and Helios ( Ἠέλιος) is of course, the god of the sun, two things that influence their vineyards, are beautifully depicted in their label. Then I drank it. This one wine was all it took really to sell me on the whole winery. I cannot wait to get back to Athens and snap up as many different of their wines as possible! Located to the far west of the country, near the Ionian sea and
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For the capital city of an Amazing wine country, Athens airport duty free wine selection sucks. Maybe if you've only gone through the airport once or twice it's not so bad. But when you're me and you go three to five times a year
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Last year on a visit to Athens, the owner of one of my favorite wine shops (Alpha Sigma) helped me pick out a few wines with unusual grapes. Now, I love me some Assyrtiko. Love. So, to combine that with my interest in less usual Greek grapes, he recommended the Domaine Mega Spileo Assyrtiko Lagorthi. [caption id="attachment_17701" align="alignleft" width="349"] How much do I love this back label?![/caption] Of course I jumped at this. Peloponnese Assyrtiko doesn't usually do it for me but I had to have this wine for the Lagorthi. I got it home, made myself a pork gyro since I can now bring home the frozen meat, and
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What's that saying about nothing good happens after midnight? While often associated with crime/thriller stories (one assumes because only criminals are out and about after midnight); it's become a pretty common warning. However, I think we all know that the sun's position in the sky has little do with crime. But it DOES have a lot to do with the quality of grapes when harvested and the kind of wine ultimately produced. Nyxteri (also spelled nykteri) comes from the Greek word for night: νύχτα. It is a style of wine on Santorini. Traditionally harvested at night (thus the name), although it is not a requirement and some producers do
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Nothing can stop my love for Assyrtiko. Much as I love exploring other and new grapes in Greece, I always buy a couple few Assyrtikos when I'm there. Not usually the same wines though. I like to look for producers I haven't tried before. On my last trip to Athens, the colorful Dougos Winery Meth'Imon Acacia label caught my eye. Dougos Winery Located in Thessaly at the foot of Mount Olympus, Dougos Winery was founded in 1991 by the Dougos family. Still a young winery, it's already in the hands of the second generation with son Thanos as the agriculturalist and daughter Louiza, the chemist and oenologist. The Dougos family vineyards
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While Turkish wine is my raison d'etre, over the last few years I have developed deep love, enthusiasm, and respect for wines from other counties as well. I prefer white wine to red and find that I gravitate towards white wines with tightly strung energy. Their verve is electric and exciting. I've been very lucky to experience a lot of Greek wine over the last few years. Two of my best friends live in Athens, always have a couch for me, and indulge my need to explore the wine scene. Given my zeal for zesty, racy wines, it's little wonder that in Greece I lean towards wines from Santorini.
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Even before I visited one of Estate Gai'a's wineries I was a fan. While I went to the winery in the Nemea, Gai'a also has a winery in Santorini and it was the Assyrtiko from this winery that began my love affair with them. In addition to the winery's Thalassitis, a more traditionally made Assyrtiko wine, Gai'a also crafts a wild ferment Assyrtiko. The grapes for the wild ferment come from the winery's Pyrgos vineyards, part of the PDO Santorini. Here vines grow in the traditional ‘kouloura’ (basket) in the island's low nutrient pumice soils. Water is often scarce but humidity is retained by and fed back into the
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It's almost Christmas! Really really almost Christmas! This was the second to last bottle of wine in my Advent box 'o wines. This was also the final disguised for blind tasting bottle. Of course I would end on a blind tasting. But, let's see if I manage to go out with dignity. Energetic and mouthwatering with distinctive sea spray salinity that made me think: hmmm, I know you! High, lively acidity, medium-bodied, guessing moderate alcohol. Citrus and sea water
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