Santorini (wine)
Santorin ( Greek Σαντορίνη Sandorini ) is a wine-growing region on the eponymous archipelago of the southern Cyclades, which in Greek, like its main island, is usually called Thira (Greek Θήρα). The area includes an appellation of the highest Greek quality level OPAP ( Onomasia proelefseos anoteras piotitos Ονομασία προελευσέως ανωτέρας ποιότητος) for dry white wines as well as for fortified and un fortified sweet wines . Except on the main island of Santorini itself, viticulture is practiced on the smaller sister island Thirasia (Θηρασία). Today about 1200 hectares are planted. The trend is downward. 100 years ago, the vineyard area on Santorini was 4,000 hectares.
Soil and climate
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Grapevines are cultivated all over the island and also widely on Thirasia, the best locations are in the eastern and central part of Santorini. The vines thrive on young volcanic soil, which is interspersed with slate and limestone sections. Humorous sections are largely absent. The climate is characterized by summer drought and mostly also little winter precipitation. During the rainless season, the vines meet their moisture requirements from the air humidity that condenses on the leaves and on the ground in the morning hours. In order to reduce the water competition, the distance between the vines is very large; on average, one hectare only bears around 2,500 vines. In addition to the prevailing drought, the constant, often violent wind is characteristic of the climatic situation of the appellation. It forces the vintners to train vines in the form of a bush or basket. The latter is common on Pantelleria as well as on some Greek islands . The occasional attempts at wire-frame education have failed.
Grape varieties
Only the three white vines Assyrtiko (Ασ (σ) ύρτικο, around 70 percent of the vineyard area), Athiri (Αθήρι) and Aidani Aspro (Αηδάνι άσπρο, together 10 percent of the vineyard area) are permitted for the production of OPAP wines . Noteworthy areas are also planted with the red mandilaria . A large number of different white and red grape varieties thrive on the remaining areas, most of which only deliver simple house wines and are rarely bottled. Remarkable results have been achieved in recent years with single-variety wines made from the autochthonous red grape variety Mavrotragano , which has since been increasingly cultivated on Thirasia in particular. The maximum yield permitted for the three white wine varieties is 50 hectoliters / hectare, the lowest of all OPAPs in Greece; Most winemakers even fall well below this upper limit. In an average of two out of 10 years, the drought reduces yields to less than 10 hectoliters per hectare.
Wines
In Santorini, wines are produced that have the OPAP banderole as well as those that are labeled as TO ( Topikos Inos Τοπικός Οίνος, country wine with designation of origin '), or as EO ( Epitrapezios Inos Επιτραπέζιος οίνος, table wine'). The latter quality designations, mostly with various additions that give information about expansion and maturity, apply above all to red wines from Santorini.
OPAP - wines
- Nykteri (Νυκτέρι)
Nykteri is an alcoholic, dry white wine that is mainly made from Assyrtiko with the addition of small parts of Aidani Aspro and Athiri. A successful Nykteri is one of the best white wines in Greece. It is an acidic and full-bodied, mostly pale yellow wine that often has a light jasmine bouquet , but always has lemon or lime aromas. It gets its name from the harvesting and pressing method, which takes place within a day and does not end until the early hours of the morning. Nykteri means something like "night work". Nykteri is aged in wooden barrels and is stored for a few years before it is bottled. Today there is a lot of experimentation, especially in the expansion. It is disputed whether old or new drums should be used, and the ideal size of the container is also being discussed. Many Nykteri are slightly madeirized and then take on a honey-yellow, sometimes brown-yellow color. In the past, Nykteri wines were often heavily alcoholic at over 16 percent by volume, but now people try to reduce the alcohol level a little.
- Vinsanto (Βινσάντο)
Only Assyrtiko and Aidani Aspro are allowed for this appellation. The island's sweet wines are produced as sweet wine or fortified sweet wine. The common Vinsanto is usually a sweet wine. The grapes are harvested overripe, partly already dried and then dried in the sun for 10-14 days. After pressing, the pressed material only ferments briefly before it is sprinkled with high-percentage tsipouro . The wine then matures in oak barrels for at least 2 years, with around 13 percent alcohol by volume for the most part from the added pomace brandy. The production method of fortified sweet wine is similar, only the injection takes place much later and only to stop the natural fermentation, so that the desired alcohol level is between 13 and 15 percent by volume and a residual sweetness of over 250 grams / liter is retained. The highest quality level is a Vin naturellement doux. These wines are made from very late harvest grapes from the best locations. The slow fermentation in oak barrels stops naturally at relatively low alcohol levels around 9 percent by volume, so that yeasts have been added recently, which continue fermentation up to around 12 percent by volume. These wines may also bear the quality designation Liastos , which is not limited to the OPAP Santorini. The residual sugar content is around 200 grams / liter. Since not all winegrowers make up for the loss of fluid that occurs during maturation by refilling young wines, some of these sweet wines are oxidized to varying degrees. Some wines of the best quality are stored in oak barrels for over 15 years.
Wines of the highest quality level are among the best sweet wines in Greece and also among the most remarkable products of this kind worldwide. They are of an intense orange-red color, of a clear, but never obtrusive sweetness and have a surprisingly clear acid structure. Honey and raisin aromas dominate, but spicy notes and nuances of lime are also noticeable.
A Vinsanto bears a certain resemblance to a Vin Santo from Tuscany , but it is an independent, unmistakable product that differs from the Tuscan sweet wines primarily through its clear acid structure. The origin of the name is unclear, but the name was probably taken from the well-known Italian model. Another attempt to explain, which is mainly represented on Santorini itself, explains the name as a Venetian designation of origin: wine from Santorini .
Wines outside the appellation
In addition to these famous wines, a number of remarkable wines are made on Santorini, such as a single-variety, dry white wine from Assyrtiko, which is usually marketed as Santorini . Recently, some single-variety Mavrotragano red wines matured in barriques have also gained attention at international wine fairs. A red counterpart to Vinsanto is the mezzo, usually developed as Vin doux naturel and a little less sweet than the white Vinsanto. Heavier and sweeter, on the other hand, is the deep red Nama , which is used as a ceremonial wine especially during the Easter celebrations. Finally, Brousko (Μπρούσκο) should be mentioned. To make this wine, the grapes from various white, sometimes red, vines are harvested over a fairly long period of time and stored in open vats where they ferment and the musts that emerge oxidize. After pressing, these musts ferment to a brownish, alcoholic and tannin-rich wine with an extremely original character. The word brouskos μπρούσκος is borrowed from the synonymous Italian brusco 'herb'.
literature
- Curt Christopher Freese: The Role of Wine Production in the Changing Structure of an Island Economy. A Case Study of Santorini Greece . University of Cincinnati, Cincinnati OH 2005 ( ohiolink.edu [PDF] work on obtaining a Master of Community Planning).
- Konstantinos Lazarakis: The Wines of Greece, S. Mitchell Beazley, London 2005, ISBN 1-84000-897-0 , pp. 376-393 .
- Jancis Robinson (Ed.): The Oxford Wine Lexicon . 3rd completely revised edition. Hallwag, Gräfe and Unzer, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-8338-0691-9 .