Wine & Spirits - August 2020 - 60

YEAR'S BEST ASSYRTIKO & XINOMAVRO WINES
the grapes ripen more slowly. This was particularly relevant in 2018, the earliest harvest
he'd ever seen in his 33 years of winemaking.
Vinified in stainless steel and left 14 months
on its lees, it's a lush, expansive Santorini,
from its sunny lemon scents to its mouthfilling texture. The flavors are ripe, from pineapple to golden raisin, yet they're balanced
by a strong mineral impression, like the scent
of hot sand. It holds its form and flavors for
days after the bottle is opened, the powerful structure promising that this will just get
more complex with age. Whenever you open
it, make sure you have some lamb or meaty
fish on hand. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277541

95 | Domaine Sigalas

$80

2018 Santorini 7 Villages Ia ^ At less than
30 miles square, Santorini is only slightly
larger than Manhattan. And yet the terroir
differences from north to south, sea level to
highest peak, can be dramatic. To prove this,
Paris Sigalas began vinifying wines by village
in 2015, treating them identically (neutral
yeasts, stainless-steel tanks, 12 months on
the lees). In the warm, dry 2018 vintage, the
wine from Ia, the wind-whipped village at the
top end of the crescent-shaped island, especially stands out. There's a hint of alcohol
spice at first, but then savory, citrusy flavors
take over, light and as mouthfilling as lemon
meringue. The ripeness of the fruit reads in
the wine's steadfast presence rather than in
overt power, its restraint bordering on delicacy. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277552

94 | Hatzidakis

$60

2018 Santorini Cuvée No. 15 Assyrtiko ^
A selection of organically farmed old-vine
fruit vinified with ambient yeasts in stainless
steel, this took 45 days to finish fermenting.
It's slow to reveal its depths after opening,
too, the wine reading as tropical and spicy
at first. But once the mineral notes well up,
they infuse the wine with a stony savor that
girds and balances the fruit. At 14.5 percent
alcohol, this is a big, ambitious wine that
manages to remain fresh and elegant. § Dionysi Grevenitis Selections/DNS Wines, San
Francisco, CA
277539

94 | Domaine Sigalas

$80

2018 Santorini 7 Villages Vourvoulos ^
Vourvoulos, a warm spot north and inland
from Fira, often produces one of Sigalas's
most powerful Santorinis, and the 2018 is no
exception. Hidden behind a screen of smoky
reduction at first, the wine opens with air to
blue-sky flavors of sunny lemon and blinding chalk. It settles into a salty Meyer lemon
succor-bright but not screaming, almost
elegant for Santorini, and it should become
even more so with more time in the bottle. §
Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277540

94 | Domaine Sigalas

$80

2018 Santorini 7 Villages Megalochori ^
From warm, low-lying vineyards at the southern end of the island, Megalochori gives one
of the meatiest, darkest-toned wines in the
7 Villages collection. This vintage is smoky
and earthy, with a scent that recalls sun on
black sand; the fruit flavors are quiet and
intriguing, like salted plums. If you open this
now, give it a decant and serve it with something grilled, whether fish or meat. § Diamond
Importers, Chicago, IL
277787

93 | Karamolegos

$42

2018 Santorini Assyrtiko ^ If you like your
assyrtiko austere and steely, this is it. It's a
tight, non-showy style, with crisp white fruit
and smoky chalk, the flavors lasting on saltwater and rocks. Classic and invigorating:
"It's got that seashore minerality and infinite
acidic finish," said panelist Beth von Benz. §
Verity Wine Partners, NY
277537

93 | Domaine Sigalas

$80

Structurally, it recalls riesling, though the
notes of salt and sun place it firmly in Santorini. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
273286

92 | Boutari

$59

92 | Hatzidakis

$48

92 | Domaine Sigalas

$48

91 | Gai'a

$45

90 | Boutari

$59

2018 Santorini Assyrtiko ^ This is juicy
and sharp at once, the smooth, chalky flavors delineated by lemony acidity. It's an
approachable Santorini that gentles assyrtiko's austerity with a hint of wildflowers and
warm salt air. Still, it has the structure to take
on rich foods, like scallops in a caper-studded
butter sauce. (W&S 10/19) § Terlato Wines Int'l,
Lake Bluff, IL
277551
2018 Santorini Familia ^ The first vintage
Constantina Chrisou and daughter Stella
Hatzidakis made on their own, 2018 was
one of the shortest on record, and grape
prices had never been so high. In reaction,
they built a cuvée out of fruit from their
own vineyards and those of close family. Fermented spontaneously and aged in tank for
six months, it's rich yet savory, a mouthful of
mineral flavor, with chamomile scents that
add lift and charm. § Dionysi Grevenitis Selections/DNS Wines, San Francisco, CA
277536
2019 Santorini Assyrtiko ^ This is super
savory yet succulent, like sucking salt water
off a stone, with a smooth, round texture
that's a hallmark of Paris Sigalas's wines. Not
as ripe as his 7 Villages wines, this is refreshing to drink now, though the steely acidity
promises to preserve this well for many more
years in the cellar. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277839

$80

2018 Santorini 7 Villages Pirgos ^ Pirgos is
the highest point on Santorini, and boasts
some of the island's oldest vines. In 2018,
they ripened their fruit to a deep gold, creating a wine filled with sweet orange and honey
flavor. As the wine sits in the glass, a vein of
cool acidity emerges along with lemon blossom and herb notes, relieving the sweetness
and bringing the wine to a clean finish. If you
open this now, pair it with tyropitakia, little
savory cheese pies, or spicy sausages. Better,
however, to cellar it for another five to eight
years. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277548

2018 Santorini 7 Villages Fira ^ Picked
from the vineyards surrounding Fira, the
port town high above the caldera, this feels
like a snapshot of the island-chalk, chalk
and more chalk, with scents of sea salt and
herbs to complete the picture. It's vivid and
intense, and stays that way for days after
opening. § Diamond Importers, Chicago, IL
277538

$68

2018 Santorini Wild Ferment Assyrtiko ^
Don't let the initial wood scents put you off:
Give this time in the glass and they fade away,
replaced by a cloud of leesy savor. It's hard
to pin down any specific flavors-it's lemon
one moment, cedar the next, with wheat
berries, stone, salt and dried grasses swirling by-but it lasts, complex and intriguing. Play the wood notes off of grilled fish or
mushrooms, with a squeeze of lemon. § Craft
+ Estate/Winebow Imports, NY
277770

2018 Santorini Barrel Aged Assyrtiko ^ A
ripe, powerful style, this golden assyrtiko
wears its six months of barrel aging well,
wrapping spice into the wine's sweet, dense
fruit. It's the acidity that clinches it, though,
skating through the wine like a blade, loosing notes of orange blossom and citrus rind
that lend brightness and delicacy to the fruit.

2019 Santorini Assyrtiko ^ Not only is this
one of the most widely available Santorinis
on the US market, but also one of the friendliest. It's smooth and ripe, with an unusually
fruity profile, notes of pineapple and guava
hinting at the ripeness of the grapes. At the
same time, it has the intense salinity of the

94 | Domaine Sigalas

WINE & SPIRITS

AUGUST 2020

93 | Vassaltis

Wine & Spirits - August 2020

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Wine & Spirits - August 2020