Grapes

Athiri

Athiri is a white grape variety of ancient origin grown natively in Greece. It is best known for its use in blends, particularly as a foil for the bold Assyrtiko grape variety in the Santorini PDO wines (up to 25%) and Vinsanto (up to 49%), normally combined with Aidani. It has also a PDO designation on the island of Rhodes, where it produces different styles of sparkling wines. Athiri’s freshness, softness and low alcohol potential make it well suited to these purposes.Thin-skinned large berries in long bunches, vigorous, drought resistant and adaptive. Mid-budding and mid-ripening.

Aidani

Aidani is a white aromatic grape found mainly on the Aegean islands, particularly Santorini, Rhodes and Euboea. It is used invariably in the making of Santorini’s Vinsanto and contributes delicate flavours to this special wine blend. Historically, it has been linked with famous wine blends, such as Aperanthitis, Malvasia and Naxos. It is often known as Aidani Aspro, to distinguish it from its dark-skinned variant Aidani Mavro (in Greek, aspro means white and mavro means black). Large bunches of thick-skinned berries, drought-resistant, high yielding, late budding and late ripening.

Assyrtiko

Assyrtiko is by far Greece’s most renowned white grape variety, associated most famously with the volcanic island of Santorini in the Aegean Sea. Following its notable success, it is now grown successfully all over Greece and beyond in Clare Valley, Australia, South Africa and California, being the first Greek grape to become international. It has developed a reputation as being a versatile grape variety, producing wines in a multitude of styles, from fresh, mineral white wines to oaked, worth keeping ones and from bold complex reds to rıch matured dessert wines, such as Vinsanto.

Compact clusters of large, moderately thick-skinned berries, late budding and late ripening. Vigorous and productive, resistant to drought, disease and wind and capable of maintaining high acidity up to the final stages of the ripening period. In Santorini it is trained in the characteristic baskets, sitting close to the ground and named “kouloures” by the locals.

Producer

Gavalas

Continuing a long tradition of winemakers, spanning over three centuries, the Gavalas family has been exclusively engaged with the vinification of a number of indigenous varieties grown on the island of Santorini. They have been working particularly on the unknown varieties of Santorini, beyond Assyrtiko and they are the Santorinian winery with most wine labels produced by indigenous varieties, including the almost extinct Katsano variety, from which they produce a unique and notable white wine, capable of ageing slowly and gracefully. The combination of traditional and modern winemaking methods and the unique volcanic soil and open sea climate of the island assist them in producing fine and balanced wines of vibrant fruity character, refreshing acidity and unique minerality. Their Santorini Natural Ferment and Nykteri labels are very good expressions of the local star Assyrtiko variety, whereas their benchmark Santorini, in the iconic Aegean blue bottle, keeps on gaining fans.