As I was darting off from Goumenissa en route to Naoussa the landscape unfolding before me recalled parts of Sancerre The outlines of rolling hills share a remarkable visual resemblance Yet the French vineyard does have an edge over this lesserknown Xinomavro country As it has been around longer place names have be become established stylistic reference points Travelling the Greek wine routes one often ponders Does terroir exist here Are you driving past the next big thing to emerge from a nearobscure region On this visit signs point towards a brighter future Goumenissa may one day become more famous than Naoussa Readers of these pages may be familiar with Aidarinis singlevineyard It is classy On a recent visit it was the regular entrylevel wine that impressed me most It was wholesome It captured as few wines can that elusive T word why such a vast improvement It soon became apparent that this stalwart address is amongst other things a hardnosed pragmatist Grapes for this pretty wine are now sourced near Gerakona from earlierripening September vineyards This shift from the botrytisplagued now uprooted older sites close to the village and in the shadow of Mount Paikos where higher rainfall and harvest in October were the norm is a revelation of the regions true potential This change of sourcing demonstrates how important it is to reevaluate the location of inherited vineyards over time Christos Aidarinis whose family has been making and trading wine in these hills for over 130 years and his oenologist Michalis Michailidis are on to a good thing here I urge all of you to pick up some of this revisited 21stcentury Goumenissa It deserves wider recognition and acclaim
Blend 30 Negoska 70 Xinomavro Average vine age 10 years Deeper colour than previous vintages Ripe harmonious tannins packing stone fruit and substance Both grapes shine and compliment each other on the spicyladen lengthy finish Exciting definition A new benchmark Best 201417
Wine: Aidarinis Goumenissa
Year: 2010
Link: http://www.aidarini.gr
Score: 17
Type: Red
Variety: Xinomavro
Area: Macedonia