All Georgos Super-Premium Wines are Handcrafted with Greek winemaking methods.
* Low Sulfites  * 100% NON-GMO Grapes  * No Headache

GEORGOS GREEK WINES-GRAPES IMPORTED FROM GREECE AND HANDCRAFTED IN SONOMA

Beverly Hills (Spiritsman) 12/24/17/–Georgos Handcrafted Greek wines are an emerging wine company from Sonoma that import grapes from Greece and then produce the wines in Northern California. That is the simple story, but the owner Georgos Zanganas who used to work for Monsanto, is so passionate about the wines that it is no surprise that these wines can now be found in Whole Foods in Northern California. After meeting him at a tasting recently in Beverly Hills I was curious to find out more and here is what I found out.

When Georgos moved to San Francisco he soon found it difficult to find Greek wines in the stores, which by tradition have a lower alcohol content. So he decided to import high quality grapes from Greece and then do the blending, finishing and bottling at the Deerfield Ranch Winery in Kenwood, Sonoma.

This super-premium blend is the third vintage, and the best yet. CORFU is extra smooth with lots of structure allowing for a very long life. This wine is made cleanly from triple hand sorted fruit. Like all Georgos Super-Premium Greek Wines, this wine is Handcrafted with Low Sulfites and 100% NON-GMO grapes.

The winemaker is the veteran Robert Rex who has been making wine since 1972 when he started out in Berkeley. His roots and passion go back to Bordeaux and Burgundy, and he believes in blending grapes from different soil types. In his career which encompasses far too many wineries to mention here, he has won close to 300 awards.

There are five expressions and I started out with the Santorini “Sophia’s Smile,” a Sauvignon Blanc style wine that is actually a 2016 Assyrtiko with plenty of mineral and acidity. This wine will pair well with sushi, shell fish and seafood. The grapes are hand picked and triple sorted and is Open topped tank fermented in small lots.

You can rarely go wrong with a Rose, and the Georgos version is a 2016 made from Saint George grapes. Named after Aphrodite and the tiny island of IOS, this is an all season wine, and it also goes with virtually any food. This dry Rose of Agiorgitiko is fermented on skins for 16 hours, and has a nice crisp feel with flavors of apple and peach.

The Cabernet blend from Corfu is known as “Siren’s Lure,” and is the most complex wine of the group comprising five grapes- Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Malbec, Merlot and Saint George. While aging which can be up to a year the wine is tasted on a regular basis and the barrels topped every three weeks. For fans of Corfu, this wine is a must.

The Mykonos is a 2013 vintage Pinot Noir style is slightly delicate in style and is named the “Wine of Hercules.” The spices that will attract the nose have a touch of strawberry patch, allspice, pepper and sandalwood, and licorice gives this wine an earthy feel, despite the fact that the wine is light and delicate. This wine goes well with ham or chicken and should be served slightly chilled.

For devotees of Cabernet, the Ithaka 2014 is called “Penelope’s Spell.” This is a blend of California Cabernet grapes and Saint George from the Old World. Nice balance for this wine and for the nose you can expect to feel hints of leather, currants and blackberries. Like all the Nu Greek Wines this Sauvignon is low in histamines and sulfites both of which can can cause headaches.

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