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Story and photography by Manos Angelakis
Greek Wines
Throughout the year, I have been tasting Greek wines at different events and, of course, during last-year’s trip to Athens and Crete I had some excellent wines to drink with the remarkable food (see Crete in the Destinations section). Worth mentioning are the following wines, some from large producers with vineyards and wineries throughout the country, others from much smaller boutique wineries. All are available in the USA and most of Europe.
Greek vintners vinify mostly autochthonous grapes that grow on Greek hills and valleys since time immemorial. Some blend wine from these grapes with wine from international varietals, but the majority work mostly with 100% Greek cultivars. I believe that many of the wine blends are better than the monovarietals with a few exceptions, the main being white wines made from Assyrtiko or reds made from Xinomavro grapes.
From the Florina AOC: White 2008 Petrai GI. A blend of 80% Sauvignon Blanc (a white grape) and 20% Xinomavro (a black grape, here used as a blanc de noir blend element). It is a very interesting wine, bone dry, a bit shy on the nose, and slightly salty on the long finish.
From Santorini Island (Santorini AOC): 2008 Boutari Santorini, a lovely, aromatic dry white made from Assyrtiko grapes grown in one of Santorini’s best vineyards. This is a wine that pairs very well with grilled fish and seafood. From the Kourtakis winery on the same island, 2008 Greek Wine Cellars Assyrtiko; also an excellent white wine, with a bit more acidity on the finish than the Boutari, but just as enjoyable. Pairs well with fatty fish and lean pork. From Gaía Wines, on the same island, the 2008 Thalassitis Oak Fermented, another excellent Assyrtiko wine with a nose redolent of vanilla from the always new French oak casks used to ferment and age the wine. Finally, from the Sigalas winery also on Santorini, 2008 Oia, Assyrtiko, perhaps one of the best Assyrtiko-based wines that I have tasted this past year.
From the Boutari vineyard in the Naoussa AOC, 2006 Boutari Naoussa, a dry red wine made from Xinomavro grapes that pairs very well with flavorful grilled meats, game birds and ripe cheese. It is the classic Greek red that catapulted Boutari wines to the prominence they now enjoy. From the same AOC, 2005 Gastra, from the Karydas winery. An excellent Xinomavro-based wine, bone dry, with plums, cherry, vanilla and cloves on the nose and a medium-long cedary finish.
From the Mantinia AOC, 2008 Boutari Moschofilero, a highly aromatic white; floral, creamy, soft and luscious on the palate, with a long finish with a hint of fresh almonds. From the same AOC, made by the Haggipavlou Winery, a very aromatic 2008 Moschofilero, similar to the Boutari wine but with more body, and a nose of white flowers and a hint of honeysuckle.
From Epanomi, a small town south of Thessalonika, the second largest Greek city, two lovely aromatic whites from Domain Gerovassiliou: 2008 Malagousia, a dry white, slightly aromatic wine that tastes almost like an Alto Adige Gewürztraminer. And, 2008 Viognier, one of the best Viognier wines I have recently tasted outside of France.
Katogi Averoff, is one of the early high quality boutique producers that has now expanded and has a presence in many of the better Greek AOCs. Their 2004 Strofilia Agiorgitiko from the Nemea AOC, and 2005 Katogi-Strofilia Xinomavro, from the Naoussa AOC are two lovely reds that can grace any table. Made from two very traditional Greek cultivars, both these wines are slightly aromatic on the nose with a very French styled palate.
A blend of two international grapes (Syrah and Merlot) and a Greek varietal (Xynomavro) creates an outstanding red wine, the 2006 Dio Elies Kir-Yanni. This is a classic red, buttery with medium, well-integrated tannins that to me tastes more like a good young Dolcetto from Piedmont.
Attica, the AOC near Athens, is known for producing very dry whites from Savatiano grapes, mostly used to make Retsina wine. But the Megapanos Winery of Spata produces a superior red wine, the 2003 Old Cellar Red that I find irresistible when paired with charcoal grilled steaks or a breast of duck. The body is rich and the long, smoky ending shows hints of plum and cinnamon.
A very interesting blend is made by the Pavlou winery in the Amyndeon AOC. The blend is 80% Xinomavro (a black grape) with 20% Riesling (a white grape). The wine is deep golden yellow with a nose of cherries and roses. Aged in stainless steel, it has a long finish.
Finaly, the Vatistas Winery that has plots in the best Greek AOCs, creates four exceptional whites, the 2007 Vatistas Assyrtiko, the 2007 Vatistas Kidonitsa, the 2007 Vatistas Athiri and the 2008 Vatistas Chardonnay. They also make other wines, but the four above are exceptional examples of the Greek winemaking art.
These are some of the wines I have been tasting here in the US. Many of the wines I liked in Athens are not yet available here – mostly because they are from new wineries owned by French-trained winemakers that are now starting their careers. One of the wines I particularly liked in Crete was the 2007 Nostos Alexandra’s, from the Manousakis Winery; a blend of 40% Syrah, 40% Mourvèdre, and 20% Grenache, vinified separately, then blended and aged in French oak barriques.
Greek whites, in general, are excellent wines that pair very well with Mediterranean fish and seafood, lean pork and veal dishes. There is quite a number of excellent reds, but – with the exception of the above mentioned - most are light bodied wines that would pair well with baby lamb and not very fatty beef, but get kind of lost when paired with the heavier beef, game and sauces now being used in international dishes.
At a recent lunch at the Park Room of the Park Lane Hotel on Central Park South in Manhattan where some of these wines were featured, I loved the Duck Pasticcio that Executive Chef Michael J. Hill has created. Pasticcio, is a traditional Greek baked dish made with Perciatelli and a thick beef/lamb Bolognaise, topped with Béchamel sauce. Mr. Hill’s creation used angel-hair pasta and replaced duck for the beef/lamb mixture. It was exceptional flavorful and paired very well with the 2003 Rapsani Reserve from the Tsantalis winery, a blend of three Northern Greek varietals, Xinomavro, Krasato and Stavroto.
Again, these are starting points in exploring some of the better Greek wines. It is up to your palate to decide which wines you like and which you don’t. I’m just making suggestions of well-priced for the quality bottles that I like. The rest is up to you.
To your health!
© February 2010 LuxuryWeb Magazine. All rights reserved.
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