Santorinis geology puzzle is breathtaking While researching my forthcoming book with Chef Vassilis Zacharakis I have been fortunate to broaden my scope beyond vineyards and wine
Vassilis is a brilliant wine taster As most cooks he has a holistic approach balance is his mantra
He understands terroir through his suppliers of local specialties There is no question that the tastiest fava is grown along the foothills of Profitis Helias This mountain 550m and a sliver of Akrotiri are the oldest parts of what we call Santorini today This limestone mass dates from the Mesozoic period when dinosaurs still roamed the earth It is 20045 million years old Some 8090 of the islands vineyards containing magma ashes and pumice stone are 3600 years old
Such thoughts came into the picture while tasting with Mattheos Argyros of his ungrafted 150yearold Assyrtiko from Episkopi The vines lie on volcanic ashes and sand on a limestone bedrock on the eastern side of Profitis Ilias On another front Argyross commitment in investment has farreaching ramifications Since his father Yiannis premature death in 2012 he has rebuilt all the stone walls of the estate vineyards He has purchased fallow land on midslope foothills to plant more of the rare aromatic Aidani His new winery is opening in 2016 Most of it is underground with a Vinsanto cellar to house the islands most important reserves
I could have made the above ground prettier functionality was my main focus though He is not alone on this new venture Bordeaux heavyweight Stphane Derenoncourt Consultants has been advising on all fronts Julien Lavenu leads a team of fellow technicians Grigoris Skopelitis and Manos Kotsonis This renewal by the fourthgeneration producer contains an important message There is a bright future in the islands wine fortunes so hang on to your vineyards I hope after I have moved on someone looking at this website can nod approvingly muttering along these lines Yes the vineyard protection zoning act has passed we are planting loads more of the three As No prize for guessing what this acronym stands for
Platinum Floral A cocktail of lemon zest and chalk Stylish blend of 80 and 20 seamless oak cask Focused Great precision and texture Subtle iodine marine salinity in the classy finish Shellfish were created for such wines More Chablis Premier Cru than Puligny Montrachet
Best 20152022
Wine: Estate Argyros
Year: 2014
Link: http://www.estate-argyros.com
Score: 18.5
Type: White
Variety: Assyrtiko
Area: Aegean Islands