May2015

WINE WATCH
by Sheila and Bennet Bodenstein
The Sweet
Taste of Ancient
Greece
Vintners on Santorini use recipe that’s 2,700 years old
What usually comes to mind when the
Greek island of Santorini is mentioned:
boom, big boom, humongous
boom. Santorini was the site of the largest
volcanic eruption ever in recorded history.
You didn’t catch it on the evening news
because it happened about 3,600 years ago.
That eruption is credited by some as the
cause of the fabled city of Atlantis disappearing
beneath the sea. The biblical story of the
plagues of Egypt and the splitting of the sea
by Moses has also been suggested as having
been caused by the aftershocks of that
monumental catastrophe.
One would expect that the entire island of
Santorini would also have disappeared as
most of the island of Krakatoa did in 1883
when the Krakatoa volcano erupted. Some of
Santorini remained and, in its own way, the
island resurrected itself. Today Santorini is
one of the prime stops for the Greek island
tours and a place where local and often
little-known grapes are made into incredibly
deep and interesting sweet wines called Vin
Santo (holy wine) that mirror a style of wines
of ancient Greece.
Although the ancient Greeks would often mix
tree resins with their dry wines, they drank
their sweet wines without that turpentine-like
resin. Santorini Vinsanto wines are still made
from the local grapes by a formula described
by the poet Isidoros in the seventh century
BCE. Selected grapes are late picked and set
out on straw mats to dry into raisins, and it
is these raisins that are made into Vinsanto.
The Santorini Vinsanto wines are truly the
history and personality of Greece and the
Greek people. If you are planning a party or
something else Greek, these are the perfect
wines for or with dessert. P
Santo Wines Vinsanto ($30).
A true expression of Greece and
the Greek love for the sweet
wines, specifically those that
come from Santorini. This
wine is made in the classical
tradition with 85 percent
Assyrtiko, 15 percent Aidani
grapes, and then aged for
eight years. The aroma
is alive with chocolate,
toasted coffee beans,
honey, dried nuts,
and sour cherries,
which dominate
the flavor and the
extraordinarily long
finish. This wine
should be served with
or as dessert.
Giai Vin Santo ($44). Made from
the Assyrtiko grape with small
amounts Athiri and Aidani added
for extra depth. Only a portion
of the grapes are sun-dried
while the remaining portion is
shade-dried to enhance fruit
freshness. It is the freshness
of this wine that is its hallmark
and what lifts the Giai Vin Santo
to great heights of quality and
enjoyment.
Sigalas 2004 Vinsanto
Santorini ($46). Another variation
of the classical Vin Santo
formula; in this case the wine
has been made from Assyrtiko
75 percent, Aidani 25 percent
grapes and displays an inviting
78 JANUARY MAY 2016 2015
amber color and the aromas of raisins and
apricots. The flavor is a whirl of all of the
sweet fruits you have ever loved backed
up by fruit acid that enhances the tasting
experience then ending in a long-lasting
finish that is almost indescribable.
2006 Artemis
Karamolegos ($35). When
this wine is opened, the
room fills with the aromas of
dried fruits and jams, nuts,
citrus, and honey, with
the accent on the honey.
The flavor is as big as
the aroma and presents
an enjoyable wine with
which to end a meal or
evening.
Gavalas 2006
Vinsanto ($32). This
wine abounds with
the flavors and
aromas of figs,
prunes, honey,
and dried nuts.
As with all of
the Santorini Vinsanto, it is a
perfect accompaniment to dark
chocolate or chocolate desserts.
2006 Canava Roussous
Vinsanto ($34). We are running
out of superlatives for the sweet
wines of Santorini. The 2006
Canava Roussous Vinsanto, as are
all of the other Vin Santo wines, is
a sensory fiesta and not a negative
thing to be found. Do try them.
They are well worth your interest.