Greece

Greece is one of the world's oldest wine producing countries, with an extraordinary wealth of indigenous grape varieties and distinctive vineyard landscapes. Its combination of Mediterranean climate, mountainous terrain and island vineyards produces wines with a character quite unlike those found elsewhere in Europe.

The volcanic island of Santorini is home to some of Greece's most compelling white wines, particularly Assyrtiko. Grown in windswept vineyards on volcanic soils, often from exceptionally old vines, it produces intense, mineral wines with vibrant acidity and a distinctive saline character. Producers such as Volcanic Slopes Vineyards demonstrate the variety's remarkable depth and ageing potential, while T-Oinos produces similarly ambitious Assyrtiko from the dramatic granite landscape of the island of Tinos.

Elsewhere, Greece's many native varieties and islands offer a fascinating diversity of styles. On Cephalonia, the indigenous Robola grape produces fresh, mineral whites. From the volcanic Assyrtiko of the Cyclades to the distinctive wines of the Ionian Islands, Greece's ancient vineyards and native varieties are producing some of the Mediterranean's most individual wines.