322: What are the Surprising Wines and Regions of Greece? Konstantinos Lazarakis Shares His Favourites

What makes wine worth waiting for? How much wine is produced in Greece? What would surprise you about the wines of Greece.

In this episode of the Unreserved Wine Talk podcast, I'm chatting with Konstantinos Lazarakis, author of the new book The Wines of Greece.

You can find the wines we discussed at https://www.nataliemaclean.com/winepicks

 

Giveaway

Two of you are going to win a copy of his terrific book, The Wines of Greece. To qualify, all you have to do is email me at [e-mail] and let me know that you’ve posted a review of the podcast. I’ll choose two people randomly from those who contact me. Good luck!

 

Highlights

How did Konstantinos find his first passion for heavy metal music?

Do fine wine and heavy metal have anything in common?

What memorable moment happened to Konstantinos while delivering a presentation to wine buyers in Russia?

How did Dominus wine end up making an in-flight splash for Konstantinos?

What sparked Konstantinos’ initial passion for Greek wine?

Why did Konstantinos want to become a Master of Wine when no others were in Greece?

Where can you find Greece on the map and what are the key geographic features?

How much wine does Greece produce annually?

What unexpected insight did Konstantinos discover while writing his book on Greek wines?

What might surprise you about the dynamic nature of Greek wines and winemaking?

What does it mean for Greece to have a large number of endemic grape varieties?

 

Key Takeaways

As Konstantinos observes, when you're a fan of Barolo, or since we're talking about wines of Greece in here, Xinomavro, then these wines are not immediately appealing but hugely rewarding once you pay attention to them and calibrate your idea about what wine can be. Looking beyond the instant is rewarding.

Konstantinos says that many people, even wine professionals, have widely different expectations of what Greek wine is. Some are surprised that Greece is producing any wine at all and others believe that Greek wine is a commodity produced in bulk. But the Bordeaux region of France produces twice the wine that the entire country of Greece produces.

Konstantinos explains that the great thing about Greek wine is that we have no idea what Greek wine is all about. New grape varieties and regions emerge regularly. For example, Malagousia is a grape variety produced by about 200 vineyards. It is extremely forthcoming yet very complex and intense. On the nose, it can range from Muscatine to minty to tropically. On the palate, it’s quite round, even creamy, without the need of extended lees contact or oak, but still, it has amazing freshness. One of the most important Greek grape varieties has been around for only 30, 40, years. That’s bound to happen again and again. In Italy, almost every area that can make wine does or is verified. They have all their grape varieties identified.

 

About Konstantinos Lazarakis MW

Konstantinos Lazarakis MW is the first person in Greece to have passed the notoriously difficult Master of Wine exams. He is the author of Wines of Greece, published by Academie du Vin. As well, he serves as the President of Wines & Spirits Professional Center, General Manager of Aiolos Wines and CEO of Wine Wonders.

 

Bonus Interview – Matt Cauz Highlights

Which wine should you pair with artichokes?

What inspired me to write Wine Witch on Fire?

How did the events of 2012 kick off my no good, terrible, very bad, vintage, personally and professionally?

Have there been any lasting effects from these traumatic events?

How has the Can