Santorini white wines are now stars on the international stage, as mentioned in my last piece, so I was keen to try as many as possible. The growers showing 2016 were proven correct, despite its youth and recent bottling, as it is shaping up to be a stunning vintage with near perfect balance. 2015 by comparison is a bit clumsier, but still very fine indeed. By and large Santorini whites are far better unoaked, letting the terroir and raw material do the talking; oak seems to diminish the local taste while at the same time making them bigger, chunkier. I tasted the following:a. Sigalas 2015 Santorini - Understated white peach nose, same and floral on palate, long but somehow hollow.
b. Thalassitis 2016 Santorini - Slightly burnt rubber, white fruit and alcohol on nose, bit closed on palate, finishes sharp and green, needs to settle.
c. Hatzidakis 2016 Santorini - Very understated and elegant nose, slightly bitter palate, bone dry and long.
d. Argyros 2016 Assyrtiko - Despite youth exuberant nose and palate, long and clean, good.
e. Argyros 2015 Assyrtiko - Exuberant floral nose, spicy and complex, creamy white fruit on palate, very long, superb stuff to drink now or keep, drink with or without food.
f. Gavalas 2015 Santorini - Pear and alcohol nose (almost like Poire Williams...), pear on palate, dry with a hint of sweetness, long but something missing...?
g. Hatzidakis Cuvee 15 Santorini 2015 - Very subtle mirabelle nose and palate, multi-layered, complex, dry and very very long, excellent now but I feel will improve with a bit of age.
h. Hatzidakis Louros 2013 barrel-fermented Assyrtiko - Lots of oak and white fruit on nose, round woody palate with fruit, long and complex, good.
i. Hatzidakis Nykteri 2014 - First impression=overoaked, wrong. In fact oaked but balanced, needs time and food, oak dominates currently, long, keep, observe changes and drink in a year or more?
i. Hatzidakis Nykteri 2014 - First impression=overoaked, wrong. In fact oaked but balanced, needs time and food, oak dominates currently, long, keep, observe changes and drink in a year or more?
Incidentally, a lot of fuss is made over some reds from the Cyclades, including Santorini, using the Mavrotragano (black & crisp) variety. I tasted none this time, as to my mind they fall into the 'interesting' category of things that you enjoy trying but would not regularly select for pleasure, and they are quite expensive, though their cost is fully justified by the difficult conditions and low yields of these vineyards. I did not taste any this year but hereby promise to do a Mavrotragano report in the not too distant future, and all will be revealed, so be patient.
Savatiano, as previously mentioned - you were paying attention, were you not? - is my tip for future stardom in Greek white wine, and I tasted (all from the Attica region, near Athens):
a. Perihelion-Domaine Evinos 2016 - Understated herby nose, green mirabelle on palate, long, a decent glug.
They also showed an Assyrtiko 2015 - Typical Assyrtiko nose, good dry palate, long-ish and clean.
b. Aoton Winery 2015 - Aromatic, slightly toasted nuts/burnt rubber on nose and palate, exuberant and long, from a new, potentially exciting producer.
Aoton's Roditis 2015 (another grape variety, more flowery) - Low-key perfumed nose, unripe white peach on palate, long and clean.
c. Papagiannakos Savatiano 2016 - Understated typical nose, dry white peaches on palate, long and typical, young. Papagiannakos have an excellent biodynamic winery not far from Athens airport and a good selection of wines, including a Retsina; a place well worth visiting for any wine enthusiast spending time at or near Athens.
Part of the problem is that everyone is trying to find interesting, different grape varieties for their new
wine, trying to appeal to the local individuality factor. This is positive in that it rescues grape varieties from extinction and makes for some very characterful wines indeed; the whole Portuguese tasting a couple of weeks ago was based on how different the wines are. Unfortunately on occasion the result may be individual and unusual but not wonderfully appealing to drink, so the whole thing can be counterproductive, especially as tastes have changed since the distant past and wines that our ancestors would have loved may now be considered practically undrinkable! So beware, winemaker: me too is commercial but boring, too peculiar and your product may be extremely difficult to sell. Your skill lies in finding the balance that's right for your product/area/grape variety/market, and with that comes success. Remember that ultimately if your wine does not sell you will eventually go out of business, even if you make 'authentic ancient wine' just like Pericles (or whoever...) used to sup.
There are two main traditional red wine areas in Greece are far apart from each other and use different local grape varieties: Nemea is situated quite a way south in the Northern Peloponnese near the ancient town of that name, using the variety Agiorgitiko (St. George's), whereas Naoussa is in northern Greece, in the central part of the Macedonia area, province of Imathia, and uses the Xinomavro (Sour and Black) grape. Nemea at its best is robust, long-lived with complex stewed red fruit, juicy and long on the palate, and responds well to subtle oaking; cheap Nemea is all crude jammy fruit, easy to drink, which is why a lot of it ends up as house wine (jug wine, really) in many restaurants. Naoussa on the other hand can make ethereal, complex, subtly acidic and tannic wines, lighter in colour but full of taste and ideal with roast meats. There is little, if any, cheap Naoussa on the market.
As Xinomavro is a personal favourite - in a strange way it often reminds me of Pinot Noir - I tasted several wines (but many more remained untasted, sorry!), including some from the Boutari company, once the leading light in the area, then over-commercialised, trying to change and making a comeback, as well as some independent growers: 1. Boutari Naoussa 2014 is the basic red wine of the lineout, with a lively colour, a round untypical nose, well-made if untypical and in a modern style not to my personal taste. 2. Grande Reserve 2010 is rather fuller and also untypical these days, dark colour (for Naoussa), with a big, rich Xynomavro nose, lots of fruit on the palate, young and vibrant, a far cry from the over-sold beast it had become in the distant past, when this supposed family reserve cuvee was produced in quantities of over 400,000 bottles. At under £10 pounds retail this is a relative bargain. 3. Boutari Legacy 1879 of the 2007 vintage is a beast of a Xynomavro, with a deep, almost black colour, oaky creamy damson fruit nose, BIG red fruit on palate, luscious/juicy/untypical, still tannic and long - I would like to taste this again in say 5 and 10 years time to see how it develops, as at present I find it overproduced and overpowering. 4. Diamantakos 2012 Naoussa was light in colour with a strawberry nose, delicate, light, long on palate. 5. Diamantakos 2013 Naoussa had better colour, typical subtle nose and was more complex but still delicate. 6. Domaine Karydas 2013 had a bricky red colour, raspberry nose, delicately complex on the palate. 7. Domaine Foundi Naoussa 2011 had very light, bricky Xynomavro colour, restrained strawberry nose and palate. 8. Estate Foundi 2008 was bricky red, slightly cloudy, slightly oxidised sweet nose, livelier palate desperate for food to show its true worth. 9. Thymiopoulos Naoussa 2014 had a light, typical colour, gorgeous clean strawberry nose and palate, no obvious tannin, very drinkable. 10. Earth & Sky by Thymiopoulos is the undisputed star of the area, and the 2015 had a light, typical colour, complex strawberry nose, amazing multi-layered palate of strawberries, roses, prunes... Impressive but very gluggable stuff!
a. Perihelion-Domaine Evinos 2016 - Understated herby nose, green mirabelle on palate, long, a decent glug.
They also showed an Assyrtiko 2015 - Typical Assyrtiko nose, good dry palate, long-ish and clean.
b. Aoton Winery 2015 - Aromatic, slightly toasted nuts/burnt rubber on nose and palate, exuberant and long, from a new, potentially exciting producer.
Aoton's Roditis 2015 (another grape variety, more flowery) - Low-key perfumed nose, unripe white peach on palate, long and clean.
c. Papagiannakos Savatiano 2016 - Understated typical nose, dry white peaches on palate, long and typical, young. Papagiannakos have an excellent biodynamic winery not far from Athens airport and a good selection of wines, including a Retsina; a place well worth visiting for any wine enthusiast spending time at or near Athens.
Part of the problem is that everyone is trying to find interesting, different grape varieties for their new
There are two main traditional red wine areas in Greece are far apart from each other and use different local grape varieties: Nemea is situated quite a way south in the Northern Peloponnese near the ancient town of that name, using the variety Agiorgitiko (St. George's), whereas Naoussa is in northern Greece, in the central part of the Macedonia area, province of Imathia, and uses the Xinomavro (Sour and Black) grape. Nemea at its best is robust, long-lived with complex stewed red fruit, juicy and long on the palate, and responds well to subtle oaking; cheap Nemea is all crude jammy fruit, easy to drink, which is why a lot of it ends up as house wine (jug wine, really) in many restaurants. Naoussa on the other hand can make ethereal, complex, subtly acidic and tannic wines, lighter in colour but full of taste and ideal with roast meats. There is little, if any, cheap Naoussa on the market.
As Xinomavro is a personal favourite - in a strange way it often reminds me of Pinot Noir - I tasted several wines (but many more remained untasted, sorry!), including some from the Boutari company, once the leading light in the area, then over-commercialised, trying to change and making a comeback, as well as some independent growers: 1. Boutari Naoussa 2014 is the basic red wine of the lineout, with a lively colour, a round untypical nose, well-made if untypical and in a modern style not to my personal taste. 2. Grande Reserve 2010 is rather fuller and also untypical these days, dark colour (for Naoussa), with a big, rich Xynomavro nose, lots of fruit on the palate, young and vibrant, a far cry from the over-sold beast it had become in the distant past, when this supposed family reserve cuvee was produced in quantities of over 400,000 bottles. At under £10 pounds retail this is a relative bargain. 3. Boutari Legacy 1879 of the 2007 vintage is a beast of a Xynomavro, with a deep, almost black colour, oaky creamy damson fruit nose, BIG red fruit on palate, luscious/juicy/untypical, still tannic and long - I would like to taste this again in say 5 and 10 years time to see how it develops, as at present I find it overproduced and overpowering. 4. Diamantakos 2012 Naoussa was light in colour with a strawberry nose, delicate, light, long on palate. 5. Diamantakos 2013 Naoussa had better colour, typical subtle nose and was more complex but still delicate. 6. Domaine Karydas 2013 had a bricky red colour, raspberry nose, delicately complex on the palate. 7. Domaine Foundi Naoussa 2011 had very light, bricky Xynomavro colour, restrained strawberry nose and palate. 8. Estate Foundi 2008 was bricky red, slightly cloudy, slightly oxidised sweet nose, livelier palate desperate for food to show its true worth. 9. Thymiopoulos Naoussa 2014 had a light, typical colour, gorgeous clean strawberry nose and palate, no obvious tannin, very drinkable. 10. Earth & Sky by Thymiopoulos is the undisputed star of the area, and the 2015 had a light, typical colour, complex strawberry nose, amazing multi-layered palate of strawberries, roses, prunes... Impressive but very gluggable stuff!
Avgoustiatis is another Greek variety from the Western Peloponnese which has started to appear more and more, making big, richly coloured red wines with good fruit. I have only ever tasted them young, so have no view on how they age, but they certainly provide good juicy current drinking stuff. Mercouri, near Olympia, make a good example, but others (either local to Olympia like Ktima Brintziki or far away - in Samos, Domaine Vakakis) are making Avgoustiatis wines, so we should expect to see better quality and a variety of styles soon.
Mercouri are an enterprising estate whose wines I first tasted over 20 years ago, and they seem incapable of making duff wine. Not only do they have an excellent standard lineup of whites and reds, but they also release experimental wines that are always worth tasting. Their red Domaine Mercouri 2014 (unusually from 85% Refosco, 15% Mavrodaphne) is more ordinary since they launched a top cuvee (Domaine Mercouri Cava) but still good with deep colour, sweet red fruit on nose, tannic and with somewhat less fruit on palate. The star, undoubtedly, is Domaine Mercouri Cava 2012 - dark, almost black colour with a slight lighter edge, sweet red berry fruit and stewed prune on the nose, same on the palate, long, balanced and satisfying, very good indeed.
Chateau Porto Carras is no longer the star it was when the late John Carras established his magnificent estate in the north of Greece and hired Emile Peynaud as a consultant. There are now many plantings of foreign varieties all over Greece, more adventurous wine-making and a clearer vision with other producers. Since the estate was taken over by the banks and auctioned off to a large construction company they have become producers of wines that are competently made but rather ordinary, perhaps lacking passion. The 2006 Ch. Porto Carras on show had a ripe red fruit and oak nose, a clunky one-dimensional palate and finished bitter; I had hoped and expected for better.
The Economic wines from Crete are firmly in the 'interesting' category, with all the wines representing a bit of a challenge to thoughts and palate, but the whites especially: his Assyrtiko 2012 had a big, old-fashioned nose and spicy fruit on palate, untypical; his Sitia 2013 was golden-yellow, spicy on the palate but kind of weird. There was also an ethereal 2014 rose, but...
The sweet wines I tasted were:
a. Economou Sitia doux, a bit cloudy, complex burnt sugar on nose, less sweet but layered and complex on the palate, long.
b. Domaine Vakakis Samos Epogdon 2015 had a light golden colour, very sweet muscat nose, luscious, sweet rosewater/honey palate, long if not overly complex.
c. Argyros Vinsanto, of which I tasted several vintages, preferring (obviously...!) the older wines, though the 2014, with its subtle nose and complex dry palate of white peaches, was unusual and tickled my fancy. Vinsanto wines are jewels to be cherishes and sipped, not glugged.
Here I must stop, despite there being more notes to write up, perhaps another time and/or combined with something else.
Finally I would like to dedicate this post to my friend Lefteris Kouris, who passed away a few days ago rather unexpectedly. Well-known in the Greek wine world, his smiling face, sense of humour and underlying kindness will be missed by all who knew him - may he rest in peace.
No comments:
Post a Comment