Day 1, Grape 1, Wine 1

I could hardly wait to begin the adventure! But first I had to figure out how to pronounce Agiorgitiko (ah-zhero-Gee-tee-koh). What a mouthful, I wonder if the grape will match its name. As I mentioned earlier, I will be referring to the The New Wine Lover’s Companion for definitions and pronunciations. This red grape variety is thought to be one of Greek’s oldest grape varieties and the second most planted grape in the country. With a bottle of 2005 Boutari Nemea in hand ( made up of 100% Agiorgitiko), my taste testers Meredith and Jane joined me for an evening of Greek dining at Opa Grill, a wonderful BYOB Greek restaurant in Dallas. Watching the waitress pour the wine in our glasses, we could feel ourselves getting caught up in a Greek moment as we nibbled on humus, calamari, and yummy green olives and tried our first sip of the Agiorgitiko variety. The red wine was light, mild and almost bordered bland but then as we continued sipping, we noticed how much the food brought out the flavor of the wine. It only got better! I can’t imagine a better way to taste this variety than pairing it with Pastitso (Greek lasagna), Spanakopita (spinach layered with phyllo), Gyro, Dolma and a wonderful lemon soup called Avgolemono.
Referring to Tyler Coleman in his book, A Year of Wine, “Context is wildly underrated when it comes to enjoying wine. Where we are, whom we’re with, what time of year it is and what we are eating…… and even how we are drinking it all influences our perceptions of wine.” So our experience of tasting this Greek grape variety was heightened by the delicious Spanakopita and the delightful murals on the walls and Greek background music. Yes, the mood and food definitely played a part in this tasting…. at one point we could see ourselves sitting in an outdoor cafe in Athens, sipping Agiorgitiko.