In the scope of history Retsina is a recent arrival in the Mediterranean Resinated wine was first mentioned in Greece in 2300 BC It was also made elsewhere where vines and pine trees were to be found That covers a large part of the northern Mediterranean coastline amongst other places Narbonne in todays France and the Greekfounded port town of Eborio in todays Spanish Catalunia Other older cultures made it long before Looking eastwards coastal China 6000 BC Shiraz in todays Iran where grape pips and crystallised resin were found in jars dated 5000 BC With bacteria lurking in water wine was an accessible and safer base for medicinal potions Honey herbs roots various tinctures bitters were also used Fresh seawater was added as a mild laxative The antiseptic properties of resin were also known How did the R word enter Greek culture In a not entirely unexpected moment of serendipity it was the sealing properties of resin that are thought to have accidentally given birth to resinated wine Wooden casks were first used by Romans The Greeks also widely used jars to ferment store and transport Plaster leather or wood were used as closures At some point a resourceful potter or perhaps a merchant ship captain added a swipe of resin on the circular jar top While at sea the protector resin acting as sealant came into contact with wine This newly born pine infused wine actually reached beyond the flavour sensation and senseawakening burst of menthol Let me put it this way If a soldier were struck by diarrhoea it was not the best of conditions to go fight It was comforting and reassuring to stay healthy by dropping by your local wine merchants shed with amphorae stuck into the ground and take in a dose of homeopathy while enjoying a drink Hop into our time capsule and fast forward a couple of millennia to Thessaloniki where Stelios Kechris reinvented retsina by repositioning it for the 21st century To put things into perspective In this bustling maritime city there are several large retsinaonly houses with most envied profitability for the Greek wine world Their cash flow reflects the thousands of bottles opened daily It is a different business model to capitalintensive wineries in need of time expensive oak additional bottle ageing where retsina is not in sight and in some addresses indeed looked upon as anachronistic anathema When the Greek wine sector was investing in modern farming techniques of indigenous grapes underground cellars modern wine making kit and replacing modern graphics for kitsch labels Kechris bet the shop by focusing on a niche quality retsina He had to fight the price issue and a clientele initially indifferent to this revisited retsina Ultimately he won the wager He underestimated by how much though After 15 years of uphill struggle he now sells 900000 500 ml Kechribari bottles annually Even more remarkably this achievement took place in a highly competitive largevolume environment where the dominant negociants count their quarterly production in millions of bottles Chapeau bas Monsieur Kechris Filles
Kechribari a clever play on the words of the producers surname and the amber colour of the pine tear Cork closure Starbright Green tints Deftly blended Goumenissa Roditis 85 and Attica Savatiano 15 Citrus on the clean dry modern fruity aftertaste Understated menthol lift Harmonious Balanced Imaginative and well done A lot of character packed in the lightbodied 115 ABV Aleppo pine pinus halepensis resin sourced mainly from Chalkidiki and Attica added while the grape must ferments Not just for ModernGreek fare Try with spicy aromatic Indian dishes
Wine: Kechribari Retsina Stelios Kechris and Daughters
Year:
Link: http://www.kechri.gr
Score: 17
Type: White
Variety: Roditis
Area: Macedonia