Estate Argyros Assyrtiko Santorini 2018
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Parker
Robert -
Spirits
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Winemaker Notes
Assyrtiko is the iconic grape of Santorini, known for it's relatively high natural acidity. This wine is true to character, with flavors of citrus, lemongrass and stone. It is medium-bodied and elegant with great finesse.
Great with fish, shellfish, sushi and vegetable dishes.
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2018 Assyrtiko, the regular Santorini, although in a fairly big bottle these days, is unoaked, dry (1.6 grams of residual sugar, 6.92 of total acidity) and comes in at 13.5% alcohol. This is a blend from mainly Messaria, Karterados, Pyrgos, Megalochori and Akrotiri. It is beautifully structured and feels more concentrated than one would think. There's a slight reductive hint, but this fills the mouth well and seems bigger than it is on paper. There is a tight and relatively tense finish. The reductive nuance is mostly pulled in with air and warmth. It certainly has the stuffing to hold up to foods. The winery suggests that it can last for a decade, which seems about right. It might do better, if well stored. As between this and its 2019 sibling this issue, I'd take the 2019—for the moment. That's a sexier wine. I won't be surprised if this is the winner in a few years.
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Wine & Spirits
This is Matthew Argyros’s flagship Santorini, a cuvée of old-vine fruit gently pressed, then aged for a short time on the lees. It’s steely and lean, the clarity of the chalky flavors giving it an electric feel. It lasts, shimmering with minerality, as white as Santorini’s chalk caves, redolent with salinity.
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Suckling
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Founded in 1903, the Argyros Estate is located on the island of Santorini, famed for its spiraling vines and white washed churches. In 1950, the Argyros vineyards were passed down to the founder’s son, who tripled the estate from 5 to 15 acres. Yiannis Argyros, the third-generation owner of the estate who took over in 1974, began looking beyond the local market for his wines. The inorganic soil of the island of Santorini is naturally immune to Phylloxera and many other vineyard pests, reducing the need for synthetic herbicides & pesticides. Estate Argyros practices sustainable viticulture, using composted grape must as fertilizer, and plowing the vineyards with mules.
The estate vineyards are located primarily in Episkopi and Pyrgos, which are prime locations for Assyrtiko. The ungrafted vines range in age from 30 to over 150 years, and are trained into basket-shaped bowls, a traditional technique called ""kouloura"". Today, Mathew Argyros, the fourth generation of family winemakers, continues his father's legacy by making legendary wines from Assyrtiko and other indigenous Santorinian varietals, using traditional techniques.
A crisp white variety full of zippy acidity, Assyrtiko comes from the volcanic Greek island of Santorini but is grown increasingly wide throughout the country today. Assyrtiko’s popularity isn’t hard to explain: it retains its acid and mineral profile in a hot climate, stands alone or blends well with other grapes and can also withstand some age. Somm Secret—On the fairly barren, windswept Mediterranean island of Santorini, Assyrtiko vines must be cultivated in low baskets, pinned to the ground. The shape serves to preserve moisture and protect the growing grapes in its interior.