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Papua New GuineaFlavors · Fira (Thira)
Sweet natural white wine from Santorini, made with Assyrtiko, Aidani and Athiri grapes dried in the sun and aged for a long time in barrel. It ranges in color from amber to dark brown and is part of the Protected Designation of Origin Santorini.
Traditional drink from Fira (Thira), Egeu Meridional
Also known as: Βινσάντο, Vinsanto Santorinis
Illustrative images. The pictures in this guide are illustrations based on the real place, not photographs, and may differ from it.
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Vinsanto — Fira (Thira), Greece
Vinsanto is the traditional sweet wine of Santorini. The island’s white grapes, especially Assyrtiko together with Aidani and Athiri, are harvested at the end of August and spread on the ground in the sun for eight to twelve days. As they lose water, the berries concentrate sugar and acidity, and the must pressed from them is thick and very sweet.
Fermentation is slow and stops on its own, leaving a large portion of the sugar in the wine, without addition of alcohol. Afterwards vinsanto is aged in old barrels for many years; according to the association Wines of Greece, some wines spend more than forty years in wood. Over time the color moves from amber to dark brown, and the aroma recalls raisins, dried fig, honey, coffee and orange peel, always with the bright acidity of Assyrtiko.
Production is part of the Protected Designation of Origin Santorini, which covers the island’s vineyards, grown on volcanic soil with vines trained in a basket shape low to the ground to protect them from the wind.
Santorini vinsanto is different from the Italian vin santo, produced in regions such as Tuscany.
Fira (Thira) , Egeu Meridional
Fira is the capital of Santorini, the island of vinsanto: the sweet wine made from the island’s sun-dried grapes, within the Protected Designation of Origin Santorini.
White grapes from Santorini, mainly Assyrtiko with Aidani and Athiri, dried in the sun after harvest. No addition of alcohol. Aged in barrel.
Chilled, served in a small glass, after the meal or with dessert. Pairs with nut-and-honey sweets, dark chocolate, dried fruits and blue or aged cheeses.
Dessert wine, served year-round.
Your questions
A sweet natural white wine from Santorini, made with Assyrtiko, Aidani and Athiri grapes dried in the sun and aged for many years in barrel. It is part of the Protected Designation of Origin Santorini.
No. Vin santo is an Italian wine, especially from Tuscany. Santorini vinsanto is made with the island’s white grapes dried in the sun and belongs to the Santorini designation of origin.
Because the grapes dry in the sun for more than a week before going to the press. Sugar becomes concentrated and a large part of it remains in the wine after fermentation, without the addition of alcohol.
Flavors of Greece
White wine flavored with Aleppo pine resin, added to the must during fermentation. The Attica Region calls it an Attica specialty, where it is made mainly with the Savatiano grape, and the name is a traditional designation reserved for wines from Greece.
Layered baked tart of thinly sliced zucchini and potato, with mizithra cheese and mint, sometimes topped with pastry. It is named for Chania, in western Crete, and is a summer dish (June to August), when zucchini are in season.
Rooster or veal slowly cooked in a tomato and wine sauce seasoned with cinnamon, bay leaf, nutmeg and other spices, served with thick pasta and grated cheese. It’s Corfu’s Sunday and festive dish, of Venetian heritage.
Thin slices of beef dredged in flour, browned and cooked in a light sauce of white wine or wine vinegar, with plenty of garlic, parsley and pepper. It is a Corfu dish of Venetian heritage, served with potatoes, rice or pasta.
Dry barley rusk, moistened and topped with grated tomato, fresh mizithra or feta cheese, olive oil and oregano, sometimes with olives and capers. It’s the best-known snack and light meal of Cretan cuisine.
Grape marc brandy distilled in Crete after the harvest, without anise. It has a geographical indication as Tsikoudia of Crete, is served chilled in small glasses, and accompanies Cretan hospitality from the start to the end of a meal.
Fried patties made from chopped tomato, scallion, herbs and flour, served as a snack. They are a specialty of Santorini, made with the island’s small tomato, grown without irrigation in volcanic soil.
Sweet white wine from southern the Peloponnese, made from grapes sun-dried and barrel-aged. It revives the wine that merchants shipped from Monemvasia to Europe in the Middle Ages, when the port was known by its Frankish name, Malvasia.
Mykonos onion pie, filled with onion, the island’s fresh cheese tyrovolia, eggs and dill, between two layers of pastry. It is noted as one of the island’s oldest and most traditional recipes.
Sweet fortified red wine from the Patras region, made mainly from the Mavrodafni grape and aged in barrels until it develops notes of raisins, coffee and dried fruit. It has a protected designation of origin and is the dessert wine most associated with the city.
Toasted sesame and honey bar with almonds, orange peel and spices, cut into diamond shapes. It is Rhodes’ sweet offered at weddings and baptisms and has a Protected Geographical Indication from the European Union.
Pomace brandy (grape marc), with or without anise, served chilled in small bottles with snacks. It has geographical indications for Thessaly and for Tyrnavos, and in Volos it gives its name to the houses where each round arrives with a meze.
Pie made with very thin pastry, open and layered, filled with semolina custard and topped with sugar and cinnamon. It is also made savory, with cheese, ground meat or spinach. In Thessaloniki it is eaten in the morning with coffee and sold in pieces cut to order.
