Introduction

Making and drinking wine ( krasi in Greek ) are an important part of Greek culture .The country's mild, dry climate and chalky soil are favorable to growing wine . Greece is the ninth largest producer of wines in Europe and fourteenth worldwide and has over 300 indigenous varieties of wine .The most famous of the Greek wines are :

Retsina (Ρετσίνα in Greek), wine that has been flavored with the resin of pine trees. Goes well with Greek food and is a good aperitif . considered by some to be an acquired taste .Adding resin to wine is a process that dates back to antiquity when resin was used to make the amphorae impermeable and preserve the wine .retina should be drunk young and cool . the best restinas come from the Attica region .

Tsipuro a wine produced from the grape skins left over from wine making to ferment a highly potent spirit. Also known as raki and tsikouda in Crete .

Ouzo, also made from distilled grapes, but has many flavorings such as mint, fennel and aniseed. The proper way to drink ouzo is to add water, which will turn real ouzo milky white . In Greece, ouzo is usually drunk as an aperitif and then wine is drunk with the main meal .

Mastiha, a clear liqueur from the mastic gum .

Brandy, the most famous brand is Metaxa, which tends to be sweet . Many Greeks flavor it with various fruits and let it stand out in the sun for 40 days or more .

Naoussa wines from  Macedonia is a renowned fine red wines .The xynomavro grape produces the dry, robust reds for which Naoussa is famous .

Muscat of Patras, a rich desert wine from the Peloponnese .

Mavrodaphne, a black red wine, not unlike sherry .

Visanto wine from Santorini island, made the ancient way by letting the grapes ripen in the sun .

The aromatic white grape of Greek origins in the Peloponnese where it is used to make a dry and bold wine with lots of spice and perfume.

A system of appellations of origin was implemented by the Greek Government to assure consumers the origins of their wine purchases . The appellation system categorizes wines as: appellations of origin of superior quality and controlled appellations of origin .

According to Greek law, all red appellations have to be aged in barrels for at least one year, cava reds must be aged a minimum of one year in barrels, one year in tanks and one year in the bottle .Grande reserves must be aged 2 years in a bottle .

Greece is home to more than 300 native grape varieties, most of which aren't found outside of Greece .

The Wines of Greece

Greece’s wine-producing regions, vineyards, grape varieties, wines, and wineries are explored by the country’s very first Master of Wine, Konstantinos Lazarakis

 Greek Salad A Dionysian Travelogue Book

 Miles Lambert, author of Greek Salad: A Dionysian Travelogue, published by The Wine Appreciation Guild and due out in June, explores Greece via its tavernas