Wine and the Making of a Civilised Society

"The peoples of the Mediterranean began to emerge from barbarism when they learnt to cultivate the olive and the vine."

Thucydides, Greek Historian (c. 460-400BC)

The grapevine appeals to me as a symbol of a civilised society - we owe a great deal to the grapevine for it has given us philosophy, science and mathematics, and of course wine.

Lawrence Alma Tadema - Greek Wine (1873)

The Ancient Greeks went beyond the cultivation of the grapevine, creating a rich viticultural and oenological culture, which they spread throughout Europe.  Yet, what circumstances led this ancient civilisation to become the centre of viniculture?  Of course, commerce was an important factor, particularly trade with Eastern territories, which drove the development of an advanced economy.  But the major influence on Greek viniculture was, in my opinion, Mother Nature.  Greece has an outstanding number of indigenous Vitis vinifera species, as well as diverse terroir.  Add to this adequate environmental conditions creating perfect microclimates and you can achieve a vast array of wine styles.

Dionysus - Greek God of Wine & Fertility

Indeed, the number of V. vinifera cultivars in Greece is unrivaled.  No other country can boast such diversity.  Perhaps America, which has many native varietals yet the quality of the grapes is not sufficient to produce wine.  As such, a consensus on the number of individual Greek cultivars and their origin and relationship to European varieties has yet to be reached.  Techniques, such as historiographical research and ampelography have yielded no concrete evidence concerning the nature of such relationships.  However, with the advent of DNA sequence technology techniques such as DNA fingerprinting - developed specifically for grapevines by Dr Carole Meredith at UC Davis - has greatly aided the classification of each varietal and our understanding of V. vinifera familial relationships.

You may ask why such knowledge is important and how it could benefit any wine producer.  Species identification is both of social and economic importance.  Firstly, classification can prevent any species extinction.  This is particularly important in light of the plague of phylloxera that wiped out a great many vineyards and may have caused the loss of entire cultivars.  Secondly, genetic understanding of familial relations can help future cross-breeding programmes.  Cross-breeding of two genetically diverse varietals (to avoid inbreeding) can produce hardier offspring.  This is certainly a commercial benefit as many wine regions of the world are continually experiencing climatic extremes and reaching their temperature and precipitation thresholds.  In addition, it produces new and exciting cultivars.

Indeed, the application of such knowledge has great potential for the future of Greek viniculture.  For example, while phylloxera wreaked havoc across huge swathes of Europe, vineyards across the Atlantic in the US seemed untouched and this was linked to the use of a phylloxera resistant rootstocks - chiefly Richter 110.  The US became a huge exporter of such rootstocks, particularly to Greece.  And perhaps now Greece has the chance to influence American viticulture.  There is an increasing trend of vineyards and winemakers seeking out the more unusual cultivars in a bid to create a niche for themselves within the market.  Greece's ever expanding  catalogue of distinct varieties could be instrumental in this transforming Greece into "a nursery to the New World".

But what of the Greek varietals themselves?

Please note - I am not trying to provide an exhaustive catalogue of varieties, just a few key ones so you can try them out for yourselves.  Check out Vickbar Wines, which boasts the largest selection of Greek wines.

The Reds:

Agiorgitiko and Xynomavro are the two chief exports.  Agiorgitiko is often classified as Merlot-like owing to the level and tannins and dark berry aromas.  It seems wine critics find Xynomavro (xyno - acid; mavro - black) a little more difficult to place within European varieites.  Some say Pinot Noir, others say Merlot and even a Burgundy Red.  I guess it's something you have to figure out for yourself.

Xynomavro grapes (also known as xinomavro)

The varietal Mavrotragano faced near extinction not too long ago but is now being cultivated by some experimental viticulturists and oenologists on Santorini.  Great results are expected soon.

Kotsifali is a somewhat underrated grape originating from Crete.  Post-phylloxera devastation, it is making a come back, seeming to work best when managed with modern (New World) viticultural techniques.

The Whites:

Greek whites seem to not fair as well as their red counterparts where the critics are concerned.  That is not to say they should never be considered.  Indeed, as viticulturists and oenologists develop a deeper understanding of varietal-terroir interactions, they will unlock huge potentials for white grape cultivars.

Asyrtiko is the best known white grape.  Yet, it has a unstable temperament both in the field and during vinification, strongly affected by changes in terroir and elevation and prone to oxidation.

Dafni, another varietal on the brink of extinction that has been carefully re-cultivated.  Sensitive to changes in precipitation - the drier the better - and requires strict prunning as it is incredibly productive.  As for the wine, I have yet to read a damning review - clean, refershing, with botantic and herbal notes and a touch of orange and honey.  Sounds delicious!

Plytó is a varietal that displays a refreshing acidity with notes of pear and a hint of minerality.  This is somewhat unusual as it's mainly cultivated on Crete - its southern location would be expected to produce wines with baked fruit aromas and higher alcohol.  It is another varietal that has recently be re-cultivated.  Both Dafni and Plytó have both been revived by the Lyrarakis family vineyard.  Their work has certainly brought new white varieties into the spotlight with their Plytó 2011 winning a Bronze Decanter award.

So, I hope this inspires you to explore the ancient and modern world of Greek wine without reaching for Retsina.  Let us toast to the bright future of Greek wine - στην υγειά μας!

Rain, Rain, Go Away! Come again another day!

That nursery rhyme could not more perfectly describe my current feelings about the British weather.  Please, send me to southern Spain or California - where the sunshine is plentiful and wine is delicious, and vice versa.  Or alternatively, just stop this continual soggyness.

Yet, for all this complaining we are actually quite lucky as the reverse situation of water shortages and unpredictable precipitation can wreak havoc on agriculture and increases the need for irrigation, impacting on both the economy (increasing the investment in irrigation technologies) and ecology (draining water from surrounding areas and altering the water table).  Indeed, British agriculture does not have to deal with water shortages on any long term basis, which is unfortunately common in semi-arid areas of Australia, USA, and South Africa and which is now becoming more prevalent in southern Europe.

But let us speak more specifically of my favourite crop - Vitis vinifera.   Traditionally, it's crop that does not require irrigation with cultivation being restricted by climate and soil charateristics, similar to those preferred by the indigenous V. vinifera.  This typically spans the region between 30-50° North and 30-50° South of the Equator.  However, expansion into warmer areas, such as South Africa, Australia and Lebanon in combination with climatic extremes, increasing water scarcity, unpredictable rainfall and rises in temperatures are forcing growers to implement irrigation schedules.  Methods such as regulated deficit irrigation (RDI) and partial rootzone drying (PRD) irrigation have become an integral part of viticultural practices in both the arid and temperate regions of grapevine cultivation.  With a strong foundation in molecular and physiological sciences, these techniques are enabling growers to maximise yield while maintaining and even enhancing grape quality under unfavourable environmental conditions.

Modern Irrigation - Full vs. RDI vs. PRD

Modern irrigation strategies, which aim to supply each vine with ~50% of its water requirement, are no longer focusing on production per unit soil area, but rather the emphasis is on maximising water productivity, i.e. the production per unit of consumed water, for both economic and ecological reasons.  To achieve an increased production per unit of consumed water requires manipulation of the vine water use efficiency. Such manipulation has been shown to increase not only the weight of fruit produced but also quality of fruit per unit of irrigation water applied.

These findings are particularly important as full irrigation techniques (the vine is supplied with 100% of its water requirement) are both costly to the grower and subject to government restrictions on the amount of water available for use - hose pipe ban anyone?  Hence the need to develop low water-input irrigation practices as well as identifying varietals displaying high water use efficiencies. 

Vineyard Irrigation

And let us not forget terroir and the all important interactions between soil and vine.  With water shortages, the most threatened vineyards are those on steep slopes with low water holding capacity soils with water being lost as run-off creating a large water deficit.  With further research into these interactions there is the possibility for matching terroir and varietal to minimise the impact of water loss and scarcity.

However, this reliance on modern irrigation is far from ideal as it has both economic and ecological costs, in addition to changing grapevine morphology.  An increased water supply has various negative impacts on vine health and has traditionally been seen as a last resort - it's pure heresy according to biodynamic producers.  The major detrimental impact is increasing shoot vigour and vegetative (leaf and stem) growth.  Compounds needed for berry development and growth are redistributed to growing leaves.  An increase in leaf number increases the amount of water lost through transpiration and leaf shading reduces berry quality and increases the chances of pathogen (insects, fungi, bacteria and virus) infection.

But what one makes up for in some areas, one lacks in others.  While British vineyards very rarely reach the water and temperature thresholds that would require the implementation of irrigation strategies we don't receive adequate sunshine.  Not enough sunshine leads to inconsistent yields.  Hence, some vineyards do not print the vintage on the bottle label.  We just can't seem to win!

So, Mr Rain and your cloud-like friends,

Take a nice little holiday away from Britain and venture to southern Spain or California.  Both Vitis vinifera and I would greatly appreciate it!

Yours Sincerely, 

Bacchante

Beauty & The Beast

Allow me to introduce two very different red wines - A Beauty and A Beast.  Well, perhaps Beast is something of a misnomer as both these wines are incredible.  Let me explain.

The Beast - Chateau Musar Red (2004):

This is an absolutely delicious red - a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Cinsault and Carignan.  Not too much (i.e. fine) tannin, not too heavy on the palate even with a hefty 14%abv and with stone fruit aromas.  It can certainly stand on its own and I find that it should be paired with lighter meats - nothing too rich - otherwise some of the delicacy is lost.

So, what makes this wine a beast?  The geographical location of the vineyard - Bekaa Valley, Lebanon.  News reports make it seem completely unfeasible that something of such quality could be produced in such a war torn area.  Yet, here it is.  Indeed, the remote positioning of the Chateau Musar vineyards mean soil is organic by default, something which is unheard of in most Old and New World regions.  They also employ traditional harvesting and wine making methods - no fining or filtering necessary.

Unfortunately, you won't find this wine in your local Sainsburys or Budgens.  However, you can find it in abundance at Majestic and Waitrose.

The Beauty - Alpha, Box and Dice - Tarot (2008):

It is apparent why I have named this The Beauty.  Such art work!  They say that female consumers are most greatly influenced by the quality of a wine label.   But I defy a man to resist this bottle!

And thankfully, this 2008 Grenache is as beguiling as its label - going well with red meats but can also be drank alone.  This I purchased from a local Bacchanalia Wine Merchants in Cambridge and was advised that this vintage was particuarly good with subsequent vintages proving rather poor.

But what is most intriguing is the whole philosophy of the Australian winemakers Alpha, Box & Dice.  Their website is resembles something close to an art installation.

And they also supply technical notes for their wines, which for an aspiring wine scientist, i.e. Me, is more than fantastic.  It even details irrigation scheduling...my favourite topic of discussion at the moment.

Below is a snapshot of Alpha Box & Dice notes on Changing Lanes (cv. Tempranillo/Cabernet Sauvignon 2005).

So, there we have it!  Two reds - A Beauty and A Beast.  Enjoy!