Its all Greek to me

I've just come back from a short trip to Athens. Now the Greeks are not especially recognised for their wine and so it was with some trepidation that I thought I would try some of their local Reds to see how they were doing. Choosing one to try from labels that look like spiders have crawled all over them was hard but I did recognise Cabernet Sauvignon on a couple and being a creature of habit headed straight for what I like.

I am delighted to report that they were not bad at all. Like the french they tend to be nationalistic about their choices so it was impossible to get anything other than Greek wine but I am glad that the standard has improved way beyond my previous visit nearly 20 years ago. The reds were robust, fruity and very similar to South America in taste and style. Apparently there are over 300 indigenous grape varieties in Greece of which about 60 are used today.

My advice would be to give them a go, if you can find any. My local branch of Oddbins does have one or two so if you are fed up with the usual suspects then impress your friends with something different. The best selection I have found is through mail order at Yamas Wines so if you are feeling brave give it a try, you might surprise yourself...

Medal Winners or Price?

How much are we influenced by awards as opposed to price when it comes to buying wine? Take a look at any supermarket shelf and which areas are emptied first? It always strikes me that small percentages off the price or 'sales' seem to clear the shelves, irrespective of the quality of the wine, its country of origin or grape variety. People love a bargain and seem totally influenced by this over an award winning bottle standing next to the bottle on sale. So why do growers bother? Is this a valid secondary consideration when it comes to choice? Should it really be secondary?

My own personal view is that a great deal of effort goes into these awards and competitions. I am sure the growers and shippers are massively interested in the outcome because they can probably charge a bit more for the wine to the wholesalers and retailers. But as far as the end consumer is concerned it upsets me that this flies out the window if a major retailer decides to simply run a promotion on a wine or range of wines and people buy on perceived savings.

I will continue to buy on quality and choose the odd award winner from time to time, maybe there is more that the merchants and growers can do to change buying habits based upon quality. Let's hope so for all our sakes.