I visited Greece for my honeymoon and adored the country, traveling to a few different places and islands within. The wine that we drank was often sweet. Why is that and, can you recommend some of your favorite (non-sweet) Greek wines? Bonus if they are available in the U.S. (and particularly California)!
That's a great question, and lucky YOU! Greece has been growing grapes and producing wine for millennia. We have them to thank for a lot of our amazing wines here in Italy. When was your honeymoon exactly? Something I've noticed on the islands is that in many simple tavernas there were only a few wines available: red, white, and rosé. Sometimes they label it sweet or dry, but not always. In tavernas, wine is not the traditional drink. It's Ouzo or Tsipouro (distilled grape spirits). That's changing now. There's a very exciting wine renaissance happening in Greece. Younger people taking an interest in reviving indigenous grapes, Greek-only wine lists, and a lot of education.
As for your sweet wines, it's possible that you were drinking the very basic, low alcohol (and thus higher sugar) house wines. You may also have been drinking aromatic varieties like Muscat or Malvasia, which can come across as sweet, but actually finish with a nice salty finish. OR you might have been drinking dessert wines. Did you visit Samos? They are famous for a very sultry and sweet Muscat wine.
Dry wines are absolutely abundant in the USA and in CAL for sure. Ask your local store for Santorini Assyrtiko (or just Assyrtiko). Very Dry. Very minerally finish. Less common (but available in CA according to Wine.Com): Robola and Aidani. Both dry, both refreshing, and mouthwatering with enough fruit and aroma for balance.
Here's an example: I love fish, but white wine always gives me crazy dreams at night! What are some other seafood pairing ideas?
I visited Greece for my honeymoon and adored the country, traveling to a few different places and islands within. The wine that we drank was often sweet. Why is that and, can you recommend some of your favorite (non-sweet) Greek wines? Bonus if they are available in the U.S. (and particularly California)!
That's a great question, and lucky YOU! Greece has been growing grapes and producing wine for millennia. We have them to thank for a lot of our amazing wines here in Italy. When was your honeymoon exactly? Something I've noticed on the islands is that in many simple tavernas there were only a few wines available: red, white, and rosé. Sometimes they label it sweet or dry, but not always. In tavernas, wine is not the traditional drink. It's Ouzo or Tsipouro (distilled grape spirits). That's changing now. There's a very exciting wine renaissance happening in Greece. Younger people taking an interest in reviving indigenous grapes, Greek-only wine lists, and a lot of education.
As for your sweet wines, it's possible that you were drinking the very basic, low alcohol (and thus higher sugar) house wines. You may also have been drinking aromatic varieties like Muscat or Malvasia, which can come across as sweet, but actually finish with a nice salty finish. OR you might have been drinking dessert wines. Did you visit Samos? They are famous for a very sultry and sweet Muscat wine.
Dry wines are absolutely abundant in the USA and in CAL for sure. Ask your local store for Santorini Assyrtiko (or just Assyrtiko). Very Dry. Very minerally finish. Less common (but available in CA according to Wine.Com): Robola and Aidani. Both dry, both refreshing, and mouthwatering with enough fruit and aroma for balance.