Many countries claim to have a long tradition of winemaking, but few can lay claim to a history dating back to around 4000 BC. Archaeological evidence suggests that viticulture may have started in Caucasia, spreading through Mesopotamia, Phoenicia and Egypt, before making its way to Greece and thence throughout Europe. Greek wine may not have been the first, but the influence of Ancient Greek culture and the trade routes that it opened up means that Greece’s place at the heart of all that we hold dear about wine production and enjoyment is unquestionable. The Greeks developed winemaking techniques, implemented the very first appellation system and introduced Greek wine to the West via Italy.
A shame then that Greek wine is so often overlooked, and a crying shame when one tastes the quality of the wines that the latest wave of winemakers is producing. As with the Liebfraumilch factor in Germany, it appears that the 1960s and 1970s have much to answer for in preventing the general public from seeing Greek wine as anything other than the retsina they first tried on a package holiday, but a new awareness has grown in the last few years. With the likes of London’s The Real Greek restaurant blazing the trail for high quality Greek food and wine, and recognition from wine writers everywhere, it seems that Greece is now definitely the word.
