On Greek wine discovery tour in western Macedonia

Greek wine is that resin-flavoured white wine from a beer bottle with a crown cap, right? And with that, the speaker then pulls a dirty face. This is, quite wrongly, the idea many people have. Greece is one of the oldest wine countries in the world. It still has a lot of work to do. But we experienced that Greek wine is evolving during a tour of western Macedonia. - TEXT AND PHOTOGRAPHY KEES VERPLANKE

To develop wine tourism, the Greek government organised a conference in western Macedonia. Also, in all honesty, a wine region little known to me. All I could find after some searching in my wine memory was Naoussa. Following in the footsteps of charming Secretary of State for Tourism Sofia Zacharaki, WINELIFE travelled through the wine region of western Macedonia.

Centre Amyntaio

About a two-hour drive from Thessaloniki, you arrive in Amyntaio. The centre of the eponymous plain and of the appellation of the same name. In Greek, POP (Prostatevomeni Onomasia Proelefsis). Surrounded by barren mountains in the distance, the Amyntaio plateau appears vast and almost desolate. Villages and farms are few. Dissonant are a quartet of coal-fired power stations with red and white chimneys. Where, incidentally, clouds of smoke were missing and two of them are closed. Of particular note are the large lakes that play an important role in the terroir for viticulture. You really feel like you are on a (wine) discovery tour, unspoilt places and tranquillity all around. Authentic and rural villages, Orthodox monasteries, mountain hiking trails, inns. And winemakers provide a pleasant cocktail.

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