This will be our third Greek wine review. The first was a sweet wine from the island of Samos. Then came a red from the island of Crete also made by today’s producer. Now we continue with a white from the Peloponnesian peninsula. This particular wine comes from pink Rhoditis grapes in the foothills near Patras at an elevation of about 650 to 1500 feet (200 to 450 meters). The producer Kourtaki has the largest wine production facility in all Greece, which is not surprising when you consider that it is the largest producer in the country. What may be surprising is that they are the first in Europe to use the patented “Crystal Flow” wine stabilization method. There is a lot happening in the world of wine, and Greece is no exception. By the way, should you so desire they still bottle and sell that classic standby, Retsina. Don’t look for a review of Retsina here. Ever. And yes, I have tasted it.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review are purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed Kourtakis Kouros Patras 2008 11.9% alcohol about $ 10 Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials.

“Tasting Note : Straw/lemon yellow color; lanolin, lemon and mineral aroma; crisp apple & lemon flavor; light body; crisp finish. Serving Suggestion : Pasta salad & olive oil dressing; fried seafood” And now for my review.

At the first sips the wine presented refreshing acidity. It was lemony. The initial meal centered on a soy-barbecued chicken breast. The wine showed strong lemon with good acidity. It was tasty. I got the feeling of the Greek seaside. The meal included an old favorite of mine, potatoes roasted in chicken fat. (The Greeks do their roasted potatoes differently.) The wine cut the grease. With a white corn and black bean salsa the wine’s acidity picked up but its fruit descended. With the dessert of fruit juice candy I got the lanolin that I had been promised.

The next meal involved a packaged eggplant rolatini with tomatoes, ricotta and mozzarella cheese that I slathered with grated Parmesan Cheese. This wine presented strong lemon flavor and acidity with a moderate length. Dessert was a high-quality, French lemon pie with a buttery crust. The wine was thin and yet pleasant. The two lemons meshed.

My final meal involved an omelet perked up with garlic powder and crushed chillies. The wine was pleasantly acidic and round with a side of moderately spicy guacamole. The wine became more acidic but remained pleasant and refreshing. This was a summer terrace wine. Before the traditional two cheeses I enjoyed some Matjes herring. The wine became sweet with a delicate lemon flavor. This was a pretty good pairing.

The first cheese was a local Provolone. This relatively flat cheese managed to weaken the wine. With a nutty Swiss, the wine wasn’t very present and not worth wasting on the cheese.

Final verdict. I have no plans to buy this wine again. There is just too much competition out there. But it did come close. Why can’t they do better?

More Malbec Wine Articles

This is one of our first Greek wine reviews and the first review devoted to a wine from the island of Crete which produces about one fifth of all Greek wine. Kourtaki, the producer, was founded way back in 1895 by Vassili Kourtakis; perhaps the first Greek to obtain a diploma in oenology, the study of wine. This company started with retsina, but happily moved on to better wines. Kourtaki is now the largest producer of Greek wine, bottling an estimated thirty million bottles a year, half of which are exported. They are still producing re;sina wine, but frankly the less said about retsina (which by European Economic Community policy may only be produced in Greece) the better. The wine reviewed is a blend of the red Kotsifali grape found mostly in Greece and the red Mandilara grape, the most widely planted Aegean red variety. These two grapes are often blended together.

OUR WINE REVIEW POLICY All wines that we taste and review have been purchased at the full retail price.

Wine Reviewed Kourtaki Vin de Crete Red 2008 12.0% alcohol about $ 8.50

Let’s start by quoting the marketing materials. Tasting Note : Deep purple color ; cassis and red berry aroma ; berry fruit flavor, medium body and medium length. Serving Suggestion : Serve with souvlaki or pork kebobs. And now for my review.

At the first sips this wine was strongly acidic with some berries. It was not unpleasant. Its first pairing was with barbecued beef ribs in a sweet ketchup sauce. The wine’s acidity was tamed. There were no tannins and not much flavor. The accompanying potatoes roasted in chicken fat gave this wine more body. In the presence of an overly spicy salsa with tomatoes, onions, green peppers, and cilantro the wine picked up some power.

The next meal involved zucchini stuffed with rice and ground beef and a side of green beans in a tomato sauce. The wine was somewhat harsh and short. I tasted berries. With the green beans the wine’s acidity toned down and as the meal proceeded the its harshness dropped. The dessert of orange fruit juice candy rendered this wine essentially tasteless.

My final meal was composed of beef stew with potatoes. The wine was thin and tasted of tobacco and berries. When I added powerful jalapeno pepper sauce the wine’s fruit intensified. The oriental-style side salad composed of tomatoes, pimentos, and garlic made the wine longer.

I ended the bottle with Matjes herring and two local cheeses. With the herring the wine was lightly acidic with virtually no tannins and tasted of red cherries. A relatively tasteless brick cheese managed to overpower this wine. When facing a somewhat tastier marbled cheddar cheese, the wine perked up a bit; the fruit was back.

Final verdict. I will not buy this wine again. But if you don’t like tannins and want a red wine other than Beaujolais you might consider this wine.