Winemaker Notes
It matches perfectly with Mediterranean cuisine.
Professional Ratings
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Robert Parker's Wine Advocate
The 2021 L’Esprit du Lac Rosé Vielles Vignes is an unoaked Xinomavro coming in at 13.8% alcohol. This is made with the saignée method, using Kali Riza Old Vines Xinomavro. Pale salmon in color, bright and refreshing, this is a fine offering. This is dramatically different than the relatively simple Akakies in this report. This L'Esprit du Lac is based more on acidity and less on bold flavors. There is tension on the finish, and it lingers nicely. It is very dry, and it has more than adequate concentration for a pink. This can be drunk on its own, but it might do better with food. It is certainly not a simple and fruity pink. It's impressive, though. It can hold a few years, and it might even improve a little over the next year or so.
Whether it’s playful and fun or savory and serious, most rosé today is not your grandmother’s White Zinfandel, though that category remains strong. Pink wine has recently become quite trendy, and this time around it’s commonly quite dry. Since the pigment in red wines comes from keeping fermenting juice in contact with the grape skins for an extended period, it follows that a pink wine can be made using just a brief period of skin contact—usually just a couple of days. The resulting color depends on grape variety and winemaking style, ranging from pale salmon to deep magenta.
A picturesque Mediterranean nation with a rich wine culture dating back to ancient times, Greece has so much more to offer than just retsina. Between the mainland and the country’s many islands, a wealth of Greek wine styles exists, made mostly from Greece’s plentiful indigenous varieties. After centuries of adversity after Ottoman rule, the modern Greek wine industry took off in the late 20th century with an influx of newly trained winemakers and investments in winemaking technology.
The climate—generally hot Mediterranean—can vary a bit with latitude and elevation, and is mostly moderated by cool maritime breezes. Drought can be an issue for Greek wine during the long, dry summers, sometimes necessitating irrigation.
Over 300 indigenous grapes have been identified throughout Greece, and though not all of them are suitable for wine production, future decades will likely see a significant revival and refinement of many of these native Greek wine varieties. Assyrtiko, the crisp, saline Greek wine variety of the island of Santorini, is one of the most important and popular white wine varieties, alongside Roditis, Robola, Moschofilero, and Malagousia. Muscat is also widely grown for both sweet and dry wines. Prominent red wine varieties include full-bodied and fruity Agiorghitiko, native to Nemea; Macedonia’s savory, tannic Xinomavro; and Mavrodaphne, used commonly to produce a Port-like fortified wine in the Peloponnese.