Wow, thinks the unsuspecting gullible punter. It was a handy sound bite for scores of journos discovering Greek wine in the late 1990s. It was repeated ad nauseam. I doubted this as a cheap, opportunistic marketing gimmick. In the very small world of Greek wine it almost got as big as the Black Athena story. Thankfully, it did not come up during the NBC Television live overview of the Greek vineyard to mark the Athens 2004 Summer Olympic Games. Now, imagine Aristotle the philosopher on his peripatetic campus below today’s Naoussa. Amongst his pupils from nearby Pella, a young prince, Alexander. Yes, the very one. Dusk, supper. What did they drink? Generous quantities of Limnio? Not so, says wine historian S. Kourakou-Dragona. She attributes this to a rear-label distortion of facts by a naughty consultant. “The only person linked to Limnia ampelos (the Limnos vine) is Polydeuces”, she clarifies. Will get round to him in a forthcoming post.

Traveling on today’s Via Egnatia motorway. Eastbound. Fog. Time to focus on my visit ahead to Kikones. It becomes impossible. Seasonal changes tease. The light is shades of sandstone, gold-grey hues. Lake upon lake to my right unfold, as do convoys of trucks. As I enter Maronia, the sun beaks, softly. The northern Aegean shimmers, platinum. Billowing smoke from fields becomes one with the lifting fog. As I turn off, I spot a solitary heron with his striking stance and hunter’s glance. Kikones, the winery, named after the warrior race that lived in this part of the world two millenia ago, comes into view.

Sister-brother team Melina and Vassilis Tassou are a breath of fresh air. Cosmopolitan, realists, conscientious stewards of the soil. They are pioneers in reviving wine and its culture in Greek Thrace. In the 1990s, their father, Apostolos, planted the first modern-day Maronian vineyards. There are several novel approaches that this switched-on, open-minded address has to show for itself. All wines have taken a quantum leap forward. Until now, most Limnio ended up in blends, mostly to conform to arcane legislation. This is now changing, however. Kikones offers not an over-cropped example. In all honesty, this is the first ever varietal of this now obscure grape of anecdotal acreage that translates such a clear picture. While I research Polydeuces and the Athonite monasteries, I enjoy this worthy newcomer’s breakthrough.

Mid-ruby. Elegant aromatics. Initial whiff of griottes (morello cherries). With aeration it opens up to maquis-botanic notes. Firm, tannic backbone, with tension on the savoury, long finish. Well-judged extraction and oak ageing. A stand-apart wine, brimming with character. Decant and “watch” it evolve over what can be a long dialogue. Instructive and enjoyable. Best 2012-2017.

Score: 16,5+ / 20

More info: http://www.kikones.gr/

Weather

Prolonged spring rain brought downy mildew in places. Summer temperatures were steady, with no jarring extremes. Yields were down, which helped overall quality. In spite of a flat market there was shortage of red grapes. Harvest conditions were varied, but overall healthy. In some appellations showers actually helped. Autumn started overcast, with a notable drop in temperatures. This was followed by an Indian summer. Perfect for the late harvesting of red grapes. Tasted wines show no alcoholic imprint. Attractive in these early stages. Bright fruit. Balanced. An opportunity for regional differences to shine. Added bonus? Typicity in the more-demanding grapes.

Peloponnese
Achaia: Walked two name places at 840 m and 920 m. Mountainous horizon. One peak faded onto another. An idyllic setting, yet far from easy to farm, I learned. Lack of water in these hills means overstressing of vines is an issue; there are (cumbersome) solutions, though. Climate change? Hot air mass waves originating from the Thessaly plain present new farming challenges. It appears that nature has yet to adapt to fast-paced, extreme changes. Which means, up here, a mixed bag, in contrast to an exceptionally good 2010.

Nemea: Quantity down by 40% from the (recent) average of 15,000 tonnes. Healthy grapes, normal- and smaller-sized berries. Tasting the grapes that are delivered to wineries is instructive: The tastier grape, think of aroma on the palate, were good. No surprise that the best sites (and farmers) achieved this ‘‘aromatic’’ hallmark. Neutral-tasting grapes are destined for bulk- and entry-level labels. Going carefully over the numerous cluster variations one wonders how many types of Agiorgitiko exist. A trustworthy technician mentioned 280. One thing is certain: Agiorgitiko has been around for a very long time. Good colour, charming wines oozing character.
Laconia: The difficult in farming white grape Kydonitsa was bar none the single most remarkable tank tasted. A smoky mineral charged with gravitas fruit bomb. Simply, there is nothing else like it in the Greek vineyard. Photographer Kostantinos Pittas who rarely comments on our daily tastings was smitten. Forget Malagousia. ‘’ Little quince’’ has it all. Aroma, fruit and acidity. Minerality? It transposes the windswept rocky arid environment it struggles in this eastern ‘‘finger’’ of the Peloponnese. Untapped high potential.

Central Greece

Hinterland of Thebes: Quantities were down. Delicate aromatic Savatiano showed more typicity than the blowsy 2010s. Terrific, new to me Assyrtiko. Is this the birth of a new terroir for this star grape? The obscure dark-skinned Mouchtaro may not be the next best thing in the Greek vineyard. Useful in blends with cosmopolitan varieties, such as Syrah and Cabernet Sauvignon, for rosé or dry red wines.

Tyrnavos: Thanks to an up and coming address, another pleasant surprise. Summer was cooler, with marked diurnal temperature variation. Re-discovered floral Limniona is poised, balanced. This cultivar is not to be confused with the demanding Limnio grown in Macedonia.

Northern Greece

Thrace: What a difference from recent previous visits! A still hazy terroir has grown up, slowly coming into focus. Fragrant, soft, mouth-watering. Star? The difficult to ripen Limnio. Have never seen this historic, though now obscure, grape deliver its distinctive identity.

Drama: in all colours, very impressive. Lip-smacking freshness in whites. Rosés are pleasing, with their refreshing bone-dry factor. Reds, varietal or blends, have taken this re-energised region a notch up. They will be talked about.
Kavala: A terroir is unfolding in these foothills of Mount Pangeon, influenced by the cooling breezes of the northern Aegean shoreline. Vibrant freshness, grapey whites. A new dimension of added depth in red blends. These are all worthy efforts.

Naoussa: In 17 years of field trips I have never tasted such attractive site translation (early November). Good colour. Perfumed complexity. Tasty ripe tannins. Elegance. Interesting to follow how these seductive wines develop. There was a change of guard in several underperforming estates. As reported elsewhere in these pages the so-called “Naoussa gang” 30-somethings are upping their game. This, shrinking in acreage, historic region needed this kick start. Look out for forthcoming reviews from a clutch of estates in transition.

Amyndeon: Vineyard hygiene was not the best; affected with downy mildew. Diligent farmers were rewarded with a small yet high-quality crop. Exciting Xinomavro sparkling Blanc de noir developments emphasize the increasingly understood talents of this cooler plateau. Xinomavro’s and blends are complete.
Siatista: What a change the Egnatia highway has brought to this, once important, historic old-vine region famous for its late-harvest Xinomavro and Moschomavro dessert wines! The fur business may not be what it once was, with most of the manufacturing moving to China. Nevertheless, I sensed a renewed interest for dry red wine. Met with several younger and older farmers. Soft, spicy aroma. Discreet. Whispering; not shouting. A new to me Xinomavro expression. Extolling the virtues of a wine made from 87 year old vines, I urged vineyard owners not to uproot the precious DNA pool of surviving old vines.

Aegean

Santorini: Cool weather patterns sealed a terrific vintage. It equals the 2009, perhaps surpasses the exceptional 2006. High standards in all the top names. Citrus-pear aroma, crisp fruit on the mineral-charged template, are all highlighted from some of the highest acidities on record. A keeper.

For 17 years I visited his vineyards and Canava. Clam-like, he slowly opened up. Eventually, in a measured and frank manner, we spent precious hours tasting from dozens of Vinsanto casks and older vintages of bone-dry wines. However, it was his profound understanding of the shrinking Santorinian sub-regions – Akrotiri, Megalochori, Pyrgos, Episkopi, Imerovigli – that was truly impressive. He also knew who the best farmers were. These were some of the fascinating aspects of this self-taught winemaker. His legacy lives on in the stunning collection of Vinsanto. In fact, it was this man’s persistence and continuous investment that singlehandedly repositioned Santorini Vinsanto as Greece’s top sweet wine. One of the great dessert wines to find anywhere in the world, it is expensive to produce and requires extensive ageing. Rewards include a searing acidity and a unique mineral character. His son Mattheos (29) has been groomed to continue this family business, now in its fourth generation.

On my last visit in June 2011, prior to his being diagnosed with cancer, I entered his tiny courtyard. He had some type of measuring instrument made of transparent material. It resembled a bicycle pump. I had never seen anything like it before. He pumped and looked at the gauge. “What is this?”, I asked, to which he retorted, “You tell me.” My deduction was that he was checking carbonic gas levels of the 2010 vintage. It was so, that was Yannis. Always thinking ahead. Always the perfectionist, protecting his wines. During the course of 40 years, he amassed the finest reserves of the island’s Vinsanto. In my ’The Greek Wine Guide and The Illustrated Greek Wine Book, his vintage Vinsanto was the only one regularly garnering 5 stars.

The last time I saw him was under happy circumstances. His great love was horses. He kept a couple. He was riding out with one of his son-in-laws on a balmy Saturday afternoon. They rode out to Monolithos, a black volcanic beach. Skimming the waves of the Aegean. Brimming with joy. A humble and gentle man. Farewell, Yannis Argyros.

Agiorgitiko is new to northern Greece: all of 12 years. Having in situ tasted current and forthcoming releases, the future looks bright. The cherry core present in Nemea is still there, enveloped by a tauter, less Mediterranean generosity. As seen in this review, it is capable to stand its ground as a varietal. However, the great surprise was some rather clever blends. There will be a series of postings. Four such wines in the rich 2010 and the pretty 2011 vintages are a step up. In fact, they take your breath away.Vassilis Tsaktsakrlis ‘‘listens’’ to his numerous vineyards. As vines with time increase complexity, he fine-tunes blends accordingly. In my recent visit, all wines were focused and articulate, subtle and effective. His gentle touch and use of cooperage is textbook. A consummate professional, he is a man of few words, with the smarts to keep away from politics. He is walking the vineyards most of the time. It shows. The 2008 was, again, not a uniform vintage, with regional variations swinging either way. In broad strokes, solid yet low on excitement. Certain mesoclimates and addresses achieved a touch of seriousness. There is no doubt of wines improving not something than can be said about label design. Even though there are improvements, the packaging of some of today’s Greek wine is doing little justice to it’s content. This label stands apart. At first glance it reminded me of  Spanish landscapes ‘‘leaping’’ from Miles Davis’s Concierto de Aranjuez. The artist? Vassilis’s daughter, Areti: She painted Harvest when she was seven. I can see her perky-faced shot framed in her dad’s office. There is little doubt that the northern expressions of Agiorgitiko will continue to pleasantly surprise us. Beyond the senses, they tickle the intellect. Nemea is hedonistic, at this juncture Macedonia has added stature. Watch this space for more!

Purple rim. Dark, for this grape. Red berry fruit with gentle cocoa aroma. Layers of velvety tannins. Morello cherry follows up on a creamy intensity. Stony mineral on the richly-flavoured, fine-grained, dry finish. Serious stuff. Best 2012-2018.

Score: 17.5 /20

For more information please visit: www.bibliachora.gr

Usual road trip…stuff.

In all of the fragmented Greek vineyard, it is landlocked Amyndeon that boasts of the most impressive diurnal temperature variations. Recent statistics only reinforce the comparative advantage of this cooler climate. For several reasons, it is ideal for sparkling wines.

Xinomavro is an endlessly fascinating grape. It is different in warmer Naoussa, where the aromatics are more Mediterranean (tomato vine comes to mind), and in Goumenissa, with its  discreet, spicy aroma – and these are just two out of several nearby sites where this leading cultivar is to be found. Furthermore, the Xinomavro-induced aromatic and palate intensity would be overpowering for a sparkling wine. The subtlety and freshness of Amyndeon wins hand down

What is admirable is that a relative newcomer, the Dutchman Laurence Hartman, found his way around this largely uncharted, nuanced Xinomavro terroir. Thanks to a thought-through approach and the precision required for a  handcrafted Méthode traditionelle, we are also seeing the more discreet  side of this, now booming, region. The choice of focusing on 40-year-old vines contributes to a restrained, polished profile.

This Blanc de noir is a revelation. It has been taught good manners. Yet, my gut feeling is that there is still so much more to learn and receive from this, now urbanized, strong-gene peasant. For this I what I can only liken it to due to the infinite guises and name places to which this grape is capable of morphing into. I urge you to search elsewhere on this site my chronicling of the new wave of Xinomavro and blends. If you like wines that speak to heart and mind, then you may have found a new soul mate.

To date, of the 12 wineries now operating in Amyndeon, Domaine Karanika has under its belt the most convincing effort in this under-invested category. Catch early this unfolding act and, pokerfaced, glass in hand,  go ahead and surprise your friends. Serve it blind. As this going-places address grows, I expect new nuances to be introduced  to this, so far, all-black grape cuvée.  Perhaps some of the delectable 2011 vintage could undergo its secondary fermentation in magnums.

Beyond pleasure, further clues could be gleamed on the microclimate and the silt, sandy and limestone bedrock on which these vineyards sit. Laurence is a thinker; he plans ahead. Beyond a twinkle in his eye there is grit. It serves him well. This is an estate to watch. As I leave, his smiling wife Annette and a school of dogs see me off in the autumn afternoon mist. Heading west on the Egnatia Highway to under-revival Siatista for yet another Xinomavro “you-know-what”.

Pink-grey hues. Fine, small, bead mousse. Yeasty. Subtle gunflint. Hint of strawberry. Finely defined tannins. Vibrant, tangy acid. Persistent “string of pearls” beads with no sign of going flat even after 15 minutes in a fluted glass. Neat and light-footed, elegant even. From the 2009 maiden vintage. Best 2012 – 2015.

Score: 17 / 20

For more details please visit www.karanika.com

A healthy dose of skepticism enters my mind every time I read “organically farmed grapes” on a label. “Who is your neighbor”, is the first of many questions any wine writer worth his salt should ask. So after tasting this news-worthy effort, off I went to see where The Wise Owl grapes originate. Beyond a pretty bucolic setting of olive groves interrupted by nature’s exclamation marks, cypress trees, this Paleochori single vineyard on the north-eastern flank of Koutsi is in good company: conifers. With a growing demand from the US market and Europe for natural wines, both principals jumped to the opportunity and joined their talents. Petros Keknopoulos, oenologist at the Katogi-Strofilia winery in Nemea’s Asprokambos, was the perfect man to take up this challenge. His principals had the good sense to send him off for a year to become a post graduate student at the Australian Wine Research Institute, in Adelaide. “No-sulphite wine is the most difficult to control. Luckily, harvest had not yet begun. There is quite a lot of preparation; one needs to sterilize all the kit. It is a demanding but fun project.”

So all you switched-on readers are by now wondering why the back label still states: “10 parts per million of sulphur”. The answer is that the fermentation process naturally creates tiny quantities of sulphur. Interestingly, white wine produces higher amounts than red.  Another tip: Just after harvest, I got to taste the 2011 Wise Owl. It is fruitier. No lover of Nemea should give this wine a miss. It is a new to all of us facet of this charmer of a grape. Yet again, as this novel approach clearly demonstrates, we really know very little about its dynamics.

Very dark for this grape, as no-added-sulphite wines usually are. Bright floral notes with black pepper. Textbook Agiorgitiko core of cherries on the mid-palate.  Ripe tannins, spice following through on the rich, tasty finish. Vibrant and pure. Such a sense of place that not all of Koutsi (500m) is capable of. Stylistically, a modern take of Nemea, which I first  encountered in 1993. Serve it at cellar temperature in large glassware. For immediate enjoyment. Best 2011-2013.

Score: 16 / 20

For more information please visit www.sofiatisfisis.gr and www.katogi-strofilia.gr

SBC’s ambitious new venture was founded by a clutch of cosmopolitan partners. The guiding lights as to three, so far, styles of fresh beer are an Austrian consulting brewer, an English marketing guru with a penchant for brewing, and a Greek oenologist. The resident Master Brewer is Boban Krunic, who is Serbian, and Managing Director is the Californian Magda Anderson. I know, this sounds like an introduction to a joke. In fact, this is a serious effort by players brimming with talent and determination. In the current economic gloom, smiles have been wiped off people’s faces in Greece. This effort could not be more timely. Something positive to fuel some passion back into our daily lives.

In search of my hunting terroir, I get to taste unexpected, to say the least, concoctions. A taste apart? A white wine, of sorts, on the island of Evia. It was kept in cask made of Cyprus wood. Taste-wise, let’s call it a medicinal elixir. There is something similar, though more sophisticated, on the island of Lanzarote. As those of you who have followed my writing may know, I have never liked beer. This mass-produced, pasteurized stuff is one-dimensional, lifeless, tasteless. What’s worse, the morning after, I wake up with a soapy palate. Enough said.

This new crazy donkey ale is of limited production. No hype here, all true. Per batch 200 champagne bottles. The wine connection comes through two unexpected sources. This is the world’s first unfiltered, non-pasteurized barley-malt beer primed with Santorini Assyrtiko (2011) must. The wine kinship continues with help from another famous wine producing island, New Zealand. Not in the form of its signature grape, but Sauvin, one the world’s prized New-Zealand-grown hops. As the tasting note reveals, though, there is a similarity in the aromatic and tasting profile.

The back label is no crashing bore of legal requirements. It is informative, entertaining too. Not unlike the people involved in this venture. The witty parting shot is, “HIP HOPPY KICK-ASS ALE. Semantics apart, crazy donkey is the first ale as wine that I know of. SBC’s other two brews are yellow donkey and red donkey. More about those later.

Cloudy orange in colour. Long-lasting frothy head. Hoppy wine notes reminiscent of Sauvignon blanc. The southern-Aegean volcanic juice seems to lurk somewhere in this briny, yeasty, rich cocktail. As improbable as this sounds, it works. This is an unexpectedly fruity ale, with an IPA-ish mid-palate which goes on to a very fruity finish that seems to go on forever. A rarity. Who knows, it may even convert a few of us wine lovers to what Egyptians called “liquid bread”.

Score: 18 / 20

Website: www.santorinibrewingcompany.gr

More recently, the aromatic Malagousia grape has also been grown in this ”sea” of Savatiano vineyards. Hailing from north-western Central Greece, this fashionable aromatic grape seems to have adapted well in its new limestone-rich home.

In its 21st century incarnation, the Papagiannakos winery has garnered praise in architecture magazines. It has also picked up several awards for its energy-efficient design. In a roundabout way, this new dessert wine has much in common with its ancestors in these vineyards. Malagousia, is the Greek vineyard’s less oily answer to Viognier. In Attica’s long-standing farming traditions, out of thrifty necessity, locals maximized the vine’s offerings through resourcefulness. In late spring/early summer, vert jus from unripe green grapes was used as an alternative to lemon juice. During harvest, grape must was used as natural sweetener to bake biscuits named mousto- (must) kouloura. A dash of cinnamon et voilà: healthy energy-packing carbohydrates. The fine lees were used in baking pork. Lees and grape pips were used as a protective rind in cheese-making. Nothing went to waste.

Topping this rather long list of uses is “vrasto” (boiled) to make sweet wine; some of it served sacramental purposes and some as a handy pick-me-up during winter pruning.  There was a social aspect in partaking at Xmas, or drinking by the fireplace.  Vrasto is the method that 3^rd-generation winemaker Vassilis Papagiannakos has revived for this maiden vintage of Melías: He starts with boiling approximately 40% of the desired final quantity of wine with Malagousia grape must. He then adds successive doses of the live fermenting grape must. Eventually, this golden-coloured nectar ends up with 13% ABV. Natural sugar reaches 120 gr./l. Balance in such a rich wine comes from 6.9 gr./l. of acidity (in tartaric). The uncluttered label is elegant, not unlike the liquid itself, in a useful 500 ml. clear bottle. Who says Attican wines are boring?

Honeycomb waxiness, acacia-honey aroma. Smokey. Ripe pineapple. Textured cedrat on the medium-length, layered finish. Fine balance. Satisfying. Drink 2011- 2016.

Score: 17.5 / 20

For more details please visit: www.papagiannakos.gr