When you ask people about Greek wine, they might recall tasting Retsina on a jaunt through Athens, or talk about enjoying a zippy island white on their honeymoon. But this category of diverse pours — sourced from a country whose winemaking reaches back to antiquity — offers so much more. Two New York-based importers, whose portfolios are now available in Massachusetts, are intent on broadening perceptions.
Aris Soultanos, who launched his import company, Eklektikon, with business partner Maria Bakalopoulou in 2011, can’t say enough about Greece’s landscape. “It’s like a gold mine,” he enthuses, citing not just coastlines and mountains that influence growing conditions, but the country’s array of indigenous grapes that producers began to revive in the ’90s.
One of those varietals, limnio, is cultivated on the island of Lemnos in the North Aegean. “It’s the oldest referenced grape in the world,” Soultanos says. “It carries history in its DNA.” The importer thinks about how the varietal, around since the time of Aristotle, has mutated over thousands of years, rooted in the ancient volcanic soil. He found an authentic expression of the grape in the wines of third-generation grower Manolis Garalis, who farms organically and vinifies with wild yeast.
Finding compelling wines that reflect the places from which they hail is of paramount importance to Dionysi Grevenitis, New York market manager of DNS Wines. He’s quick to bypass “overly technical, soulless” pours that taste like they could have been made anywhere. He’s after something more provocative. “It’s like that guy or girl you were smitten with,” he explains. “Their nose might be big, or they are taller or shorter than you expected. But those things are identifiable and interesting. That draws you in.”
Because many enthusiasts are unfamiliar with Greek wines — especially bottles with a natural or biodynamic bent — Grevenitis is quick to provide context. “I need to set the table for each wine,” he says. But he finds that consumers, particularly those who are attuned to what they eat and drink, embrace pours that are both delicious and crafted with integrity.
“Greek wine pairs perfectly with the time we’re in,” he says.
Troupis Winery, Fteri Agiorgitiko 2015 For years, the Troupis family sold fruit-bearing trees and flowers at their Peloponnese nursery and made wine for themselves. Eager to share their wares with others, they hired enologist Demetris Akrivos. This agiorgitiko offers ripe red fruit aromas and a cherry-cranberry palate with appetizing grip. From DNS Wines. Around $18. At Inman Square Wine & Spirits, Cambridge, 617-945-2902; Charlestown Liquors, Boston, 617-242-3600.
Sclavos Wines “Alchymiste” 2015 This golden-hued beauty, crafted by Evriviadis Sclavos on the island of Cephalonia, is made from a bevy of white grapes, including roditis, moschatela, and zakynthino. Scents of crushed petals, nuts, and yellow fruit lead to a palate of baked apple, mountain herbs, and fatness at mid-palate. From DNS Wines. Around $20. At Streetcar Wine & Beer, Jamaica Plain, 617-522-6416; The Wine Bottega, North End, 617-227-6607.
Garalis Limnio 2016 Attractive aromas of red fruit, violets, and mineral hint at the palate to come, which is full of juicy red fruits and plentiful-but-polished tannins. From Eklektikon. Around $27. At Pemberton Farms, Cambridge, 617-491-2244; The Cheese Shop of Salem, Salem, 978-498-4820.
Ellen Bhang can be reached at bytheglass@globe.com.