The Athens spring
Years ago I wrote the acronym VAG on my action list, it was not a reminder to service my car, it stood for Vigneron Artisan Grec. Would it happen while I was still around or after my death? In 1996 wineries reached 220 by 2017 they had surpassed 1,100. Greece’s economy continues to be a mess though agriculture and tourism are two bright beacons of hope. Despite the two decades criss -crossing the country there are dozens of these unknown to me ventures. In spring of 2017 the Artisanal Wineries of Greece was born by 21 founding members. A year later they had reached 44 with more in line now asking to join. The momentum has been impressive though not suprising as these family own estates craved for closer to their scale leadership.
On AWOG’s first anniversary they held an Athens tasting. The venue was cool as they come. In the hip quarter of Kato Peltralona the Hub Events a renovated clothing factory had Europe’s new to go culture destination in its pulse. As a near by theatre was opening for their matinee the wine show was still going when the evening performance begun. The crowd was filled with fresh faces younger than the usual wine show crowd. They quietly went about their business in a positive mood closer to mittel Europe than southern Balkan noise. Wine producers showcasing their wines, several for the first time in the nations capital, were a breath of fresh air. Their egoless demeanor was appreciated by many visitors. The number of obscure grape varieties saved from anonymity as the white Zakynthino on Kefalonia by Petrakopoulos or the ungrafted Avgoustiatis from Ktima Grampsa on Zakynthos are seriously good and deserve wider recognition. The little seen wines of Boetia with its vivacious Savatiano can give a good run to the finest of Attica. Pride in the indigenous grapes does not preclude giving it a go with cosmopolitan grapes. The unexpected singular wine of the show was what I thought sounded like the beginning of a joke. Pinot Noir from northern facing freakish high canyon of Aigialia in the Peloponese competently made by Akriotou Microwinery in Boetia. This was the prettiest aromatic expression of the tiny anecdotal Pinot noir acreage in the country. I see it more as a testing our know-how with such a fickle grape in this part of the world. It impressed Laurens Hartmann who knows cooler-climate farming in Amyndeo. Packaging was another revelation, with fun minimalist and clever in message graphics. There were a few uninspiring labels but more importantly, no kitsch or poor packaging in sight.
Grapefool event organizers and team were running multiple tasks with master classes and interviewing film growers for forthcoming material in several formats and platforms. With my head buried in my note book I must have failed to catch other activities though we will soon find out what exactly. The visitors who quietly stole the show were non other from that other very old wine producing country, Georgia. Ana Cheishvili, the cosmopolitan president of Georgian Association of Women Winemakers and her friends Irma Tbeli and Tamar Asatiani who had heard about the show from social media were keen to discover what another historic vineyard revival was all about. I thought it would be fun to start off with a star of the future. Kydonitsa,(little quince) by Aslanis from 6 year old vines was a lucent after the rain picture way more interesting than many Malagousia. We then cheekily visited the Anatolikos Vineyards jar fermented orange. They were soon exchanging experiences with Anatolikos and their Cretan made jars in the village of Thrapsano. Anatolikos had a wealth of details on their tablettes the more modern ones not made of clay. Our new Georgian friends generously shared insight on the quevri jar tradition and other issues. Added bonus to the show this wine diplomacy carpe diem.
Survival is the name of the game and one has to reinvent themselves. Artisanal Wineries of Greece have succeeded their most difficult task, their first step. It is not an easy route but a brave one. From my front row seat this is the most exciting development in years which reminds one if you hang around long enough you may also experience a Prague spring epiphany. Dionysos is back and his feet are not made of clay so look out for him in your town sometime soon.