It was dry, it had high acidity, it was tannic, but I dare not say it was full body .
WINE DETAILS:
- Grape: Xinomavro
- Alcohol: 13%
- Wine: Kali Riza
- Vintage: 2016
- Winery: Kir Yianni
- Location: PDO Amyndeon, Macedonia, Greece
- Date: 3/3/21
- Distributor: Ambrosia Fine Wines
Curious Synonyms: Xynomavro, Mavro Naoussis, Popolka
Nerd Alert: In 2010, the total global cultivated area was 1,971 hectares (4,870 acres) and was entirely in Greece, but by 2013 this had grown to 2,239 hectares (5,530 acres) worldwide, with some initial plantings in China. The Naousa Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) was established in 1971 and mandates the use of 100% Xinomavro grapes.
Personal Note: I’ve been looking forward to this wine for a while. My knowledge about this magnificent country is limited but I’ve associated so much of it to this grape, as it represents so much of our history, who we are, who we’ll be. Kind of unjust for the other great grapes from Greece but…I live 5000+ miles away. You can’t blame me for projecting my Parthenon dreams on this one grape. Anyway, like with many other grapes I haven’t tried, I like to imagine what it will be like that first time instead of reading the review of what to expect from it, this way my mind is free to…you know, get creative. On hindsight, the results tend to be me almost always wrong. In this case, I expected yet another punch in the face red wine and what I came across was not that. This wine, yes it was dry, it had high acidity, it was tannic, but I dare not say it was full body and the color got me confused because it looked older than it actually is. I expected rustic, but it actually was delicate. Maybe it’s the old vines? The only place I was left waiting for more was on nose. A bit soft-spoken. All things said, I read Parker gave it a 91. That must mean something to some people.
Thoughts?
#roadto500grapes #wines #winelovers #singlevarietal #singlevarietalwines #winetime #winestagram #redwine #xinomavro #kaliriza #kiryianni #vieillesvignes #greekwines #greecewines #xynomavro #mavronaoussis #popolka
*Sources for the wine facts are from: Wine Searcher, Wikipedia, Vivino, wine.com, and the wineries websites.
