Acid black – Xinomavro vs Nebbiolo
Do you like structured, oaky, less fruity wines and enjoy the dried fruit and earthy flavours which come from ageing? If so, then Nebbiolo-based Barolos and Barbarescos from Piedmont are probably among your favourite wines. And these areas undoubtedly produce some of the finest structured wines in the world.
Not surprisingly, Barolos, especially, are highly sought-after and command very high prices. So what alternatives are there? Staying within the Piedmont region you could opt for Nebbiolo-based wines from the wider Langhe area – many are made by the big names. Or maybe look south to the Chianti region, where Sangiovese is king. Going further south to Campania and Basilicata am a big fan of the Aglianico-based wines of Taurasi and Aglianico del Vulture (see my article Aglianico – Barolo on a budget). But to me the best Xinomavros from Greece can definitely compete with Barolos and Barbarescos.
Acid black
Literally translated, Xinomavro means acid black which gives you a good idea of what you’ll get from this grape. Like Nebbiolo it has high acidity and tannins and takes well to ageing in oak. The ageing process also serves to soften the wine. Xinomavro can be quite aromatic (compare the rose aromas of Nebbiolo), and typical flavours are strawberries, red berries and sun-dried tomatoes with spicy notes from the oak vessels in which it is typically aged.
As the wine develops in barrel and bottle it exhibits dried fruit, for example, prune flavours as well as deeper tobacco and earthy notes (compare the oft-mentioned tar of Nebbiolo). Some of the more traditional, as well as some modern boutique-produced examples, can be light ruby coloured while others made in a fruitier style tend to be deeper in colour, including those from Rapsani, for example, where other local grapes are blended in to soften the wines.
Regions
Perhaps the best Xinomavro wines come from Naoussa in the Macedonia region of northern Greece. This was the first appellation in the country, created in 1971, and requires that its red wine be 100% Xinomavro. The viticultural area of Naoussa lies In the foothills of Mount Vermio, at an altitude of 80-350m. The climate is generally Mediterranean with mild winters and relatively hot summers. Some areas have more continental influences. The annual rainfall is up to 650 mm, mostly in winter. Many of the vineyards are on the south-east slopes of the mountain with the best sites sheltered from the strong, cold winds from the north and west. Large daily temperature variations allow the wines to retain acidity and concentrates their flavours.
On the other side of the mountain are the higher vineyards of the Amyndeon appellation (also requiring 100% Xinomavro) which is more continental in climate terms. While some very good Xinomavro is produced here, site selection is critical for the grapes to ripen.
Some of the key Xinomavro producers are Thymiopoulos, Kir-Yanni, Ktima Foundi and Alpha Estates (in Amyndeon). I also very much like the wines produced by Ktima Ligas in Pella to the north west.
Winemaking and Wine Style
Some producers (such as Foundi) continue to use new French oak barrels for ageing which gives firmer tannins, more body and oaky aromas and flavours while other have reverted to the more traditional, large older wooden vessels which give the wine structure but don’t give oaky notes. A more modern style uses riper fruit and employs techniques such as cold soaking and whole bunch fermentation to produce darker, fruitier, and smoother, less tannic wines. A good example of this style is the Thymiopoulos Jeunes Vignes which is matured in concrete, rather than oak, to retain freshness.
Some Producers
Thymiopoulos
The Thymiopoulos family are multi-generational farmers and grape growers in the town of Trifolos below Mount Vermio. Apostolos Thymiopoulos produced his first Xinomavro, called Earth and Sky, in 2005 and now makes ten different expressions of the grape, including a rosé. His approach is characterised by long maceration times, natural yeasts and minimal intervention in the winery to allow maximum expression of the terroir, and of the different soils which are mostly a combination of schist, limestone and granite.
Three of the wines are currently available at the Wine Society at reasonable prices – the Jeunes Vignes, Alta Naoussa, and Earth and Sky – which enables you to taste three very different styles. The young vines are planted on the lower slopes and the Jeunes Vignes is a fruity wine made for easy drinking. Alta Naoussa comes from slopes at 450-650m and is more structured yet also intended to drink well when young. Here maceration takes place over 18 days with some whole bunches used to give fruitiness, followed by fermentation at relatively low temperatures to limit tannin extraction. Maturation in French oak follows for 8 months.
Earth and Sky combines Thymiopoulos’s 45-year-old grapes of which 70% of the blend comes from the vineyard at Trifolos and 30% from Fytia. The latter is said to bring complexity and finesse from its limestone/schist soils with overlaying clay. This is clearly a ‘vin de garde’ for laying down to develop the full depth of dried fruit, tobacco and earthy flavours. To this end a longer 40-day maceration period is used, followed by 18 months’ maturation in third use 500 litre neutral French barrels.
Thymiopoulos also offers a natural wine with no added sulfites, and single vineyard and special parcel wines. They are available from the Wine Society and other independents.
Ktima Kir-Yianni
Kir-Yianni was founded in 1997 by Yiannis Boutaris when he left the Boutari Company which had been established by his grandfather. Today, Stellios Boutaris, member of the fifth generation of Boutaris winemakers, is in charge.
The estate emphasises its focus on environmental conservation with the use of renewable energy in the form of solar panels and is aiming for net zero in the carbon footprint of its Yianakochori vineyard and winery operations by planting a large olive grove and oak trees.
Kir-Yianni produces four Xinomavro-based wines: Naoussa, Kali Riza, Diaporus and Ramnista. Unlike some of the other producers it combines French and American oak for ageing.
The Naoussa is 100% Xinomavro from young vines and is intended to be light, fresh and aromatic with red fruits and a medium body. So a similar style to the Jeunes Vignes from Thymiopoulos although it has a longer, 12 month, maturation in French oak casks and smaller barrels. This is followed by 6 months on bottle.
The Kali Riza is 100% Xinomavro from old vines in Amyndeon. The aim here is a fuller-bodied, intense wine and so the grapes are left to cold soak for 6 days in order to extract more colour and aromas. Maturation is purely in second and third use French oak barrels, followed by another year in bottle. It is suited to 5-8 years ageing according to the estate.
Both Diaporus and Ramnista are made from vineyard blocks in the estate’s best vineyard – Yianakohori – and are made for long ageing of 10 to 15 years or more. The Diaporus incorporates 13% of Syrah for its additional spice while the Ramnista is 100% Xinomavro.
The Diaporos comes from Block #5 of the vineyard which has loam clay and a high PH soil, which is said to be ideal for the production of full-bodied wines. As such it has a deep ruby colour, strawberry and floral notes and with obvious vanilla and deeper flavours from oak ageing for 22 months in 225 litre barrels. During the fermentation process the emphasis is on extracting the maximum phenolics from the grapes using punch downs and lees stirring in the new oak barrels used for the malolactic fermentation.
Ramnista, named after the eponymous sub-area of Naoussa, is another full-bodied, complex, structured wine blended from various blocks within the Yianakohori vineyard. The winemakers aim to produce a very aromatic wine from grapes grown on lighter soils and which have a lower pH. The final blend is made 5 months after harvest and both French and American 225 (80%) and 500 litre (20%) barrels are used for 16 months followed by a year in bottle before release.
Kir-Yianni wines are available in the UK from a range of independents.
Alpha Estate
Alpha Estate was founded in 1997 by viticulturist Makis Mavridis and oenologist Angelos Iatridis, with the aim of producing world-class wines from estate-grown grapes. The Estate, of 75 hectares, is located in Amyndeon at an altitude of 620-710m. Significant rainfall and winter snow provide the vines with the necessary water to endure relatively dry summers while two nearby lakes moderate the cool climate, allowing the grapes to ripen slowly, in mild conditions.
The soils are generally poor with good drainage create and the stressed vines produce small berries with intense colour, concentrated flavours and aromas. The estate is proud of its special, ungrafted Xinomavro parcel, planted in 1919,. New plantings since 1995 include a large variety of grapes from both Greek and international varieties, including Sauvignon Blanc, Gewurztraminer, Malagouzia, Pinot Noir, Montepulciano, Tannat, Mavrodaphne, Merlot, Syrah and Xinomavro.
Among Alpha’s red wines they make blends of Merlot, Syrah and Tannat as well as Xinomavro. For example, their SMX Estate red combines 60% Syrah with 20% each of Xinomavro and Merlot. Their 100% Xinomavros include a single vineyard example in Hedgehog and their top of the range Xinomavro Reserve Vieilles Vignes Single Block ”Barba Yannis”.
Hedgehog is named after its sub-region and comes from vines grown at 690m altitude on the Amyndeon plateau facing north towards lake Petron and Mount Voras. The yield is low at 32hl per hectare. The wine has a light ruby hue reminiscent of Nebbiolo with red berry and strawberry fruit as well as spices and a toastiness from its 12 months in medium grain French oak (second use at least) and twelve months in bottle. Hedgehog has complexity and a lovely balance to it with high acidity offset by ripe fruits and well-integrated tannins. I think it will also appeal to lovers of pinot noir.
The Barba Yannis is Alpha’s “ultra-premium” Xinomavro made from a single block (3.7 ha) of the old vines planted in 1919, again with a northwestern exposure. The yields are even lower than Hedgehog, at 26 hl per hectare. This is a full-bodied, deep wine of dark ruby colour with sundried tomatoes and strawberries and, more prominently, blackberries, and black plums. The 24 months in new French oak barrels gives spice and strong vanilla notes. Definitely a wine that will benefit from at least 5 years in the cellar which will give dried fruit and savoury and tobacco notes the chance to develop.
Alpha Estates’ wines can be found in the UK at Maltby & Greek, the Wine Society and other independents.
Ktima Foundi
Estate Foundi is located 4km outside the city of Naoussa, a place described mysteriously on their website as ‘in the overgrown housing estate of Nea Strantza ‘. Not having visited I can’t vouch for the accuracy of this! It’s a small family enterprise that has produced wine since 1992.
The winery produces around 50,000 bottles a year including 7 different types of wine: 3 red, three white and one rosé. 90% of them are produced from the Xinomavro variety, while the other 10% is produced from the varieties Merlot and Malvasia Aromatica.
The Foundis fled from eastern Thrace during the second Balkan Warand, in 1914, along with three other refugees from their village, and established the settlement of Nea Strantza. In 1930, George Foundis with his son Theodore planted the first of their own vineyards with Xinomavro. Theodore’s son, Nicholas, enlarged the family’s vineyard holdings during the 1970s and 1980s and established Foundi in 1992 to produce estate-bottled wines. His nephew, Dimitris Ziannis has been the winemaker since 1996.
Ktima Foundi produces two Xinomavros: Naoussea and Foundi Estate.
The Naoussea is produced from selected vineyards in the Ramnista area, in the heart of the Naoussa appellation. This is complex, ruby coloured Xinomavro in the traditional style with rose aromas, red berry fruit, firm tannins and spicy and strong oak notes from aging for a year in French barrels. It is made for ageing and can be expected to develop deep earthy and tobacco notes over time.
The Foundi Estate wine comes from a single 1.5 acre vineyard in the Karoutsa area at 200m of altitude. This is a more powerful, deeper-coloured and richer wine than the Naoussea but also with rose and red fruit notes. A ripe, more full-bodied version of the Naoussea which also sees a year in French oak, followed by a further year’s ageing in bottle before release.
Foundi’s wines are available in the UK from Clark Foyster Wines and the Wine Society.
Ktima Ligas
I came across Ktima Ligas’s wines when the sommelier at Osip restaurant in Somerset recommended we try their excellent Xi-Ro.
Ktima Ligas is based in Pella, north-east of Naoussa which is famous for the first performance of the Euripides tragedy the Bacchae which took place in the Theatre of Dionysus in around 408BC. The estate describes Pella as quite literally built with wine – as those constructing the Church of the Virgin Mary the Panaghia in 1861 used wine in its mortar to get around the Ottoman rulers’ ban on the use of water in the mortar for building churches.
Started by Thomas Ligas in 1985, the estate prides itself on resurrecting old varieties and farming methods. They now use Roditis, Assyrtiko and Kydonitsa for the white wines and Xinomavro and Limniona for the reds.
The Xi-Ro comes from 25- to 30-year-old vines and is the closest Xinomavro I’ve found to Nebbiolo. It has a light ruby colour, powerful aromas of rose, red fruit notes and fine tannins which give the wine substance and structure but an overall impression of freshness. Up until the 2020 vintage Xi-Ro contained an element of Roditis*, hence the name. The two varieties were vinified separately and the blended wine then matured for 10-12 months in old oak barrels. No sulfites are added to the wines.
The estate’s wines can be found in the UK at Dynamic Vines.
