Gavalas Vinsanto 2016

Colour: White
Style: Sweet Dry
Wine region: Santorini
Grape: Assyrtiko, Athiri, Aidani
Vintage: 2016
Alcohol percentage: 10% vol
Closure: Cork
Unit quantity: 500ml

Wine maker’s notes

Vinsanto is the mythical nectar of Santorini, produced from the native grape varieties of Assyrtiko, Athiri, and Aidani. The soil of Santorini is characterized by unique geological inorganic elements created by volcanic eruptions. Due to the limited rainfall and the strong winds, the yield is very low with only 300-500 kgs of grapes per 1000 sq.m. of vineyards. The result is the production of grapes having excellent quality and perfect maturation. When the grapes reach the desired degree of maturation (14-15 Be) they are carefully picked and sun-dried on terraces for approximately 10-15 days.

The vinification is carried out using traditional techniques in the Gavalas’ winery, in Megalochori. The pressing of the grapes always takes place early in the afternoon, so that the clusters of the grapes are still warm and at their best for pressing. The small quantity of juice that is produced has a high content of sugar- 10 kgs of grapes produce 1 kg of Vinsanto wine. The fermentation continues almost until Christmas.

This wine fills the chalices of the orthodox churches, used for the Holy Communion.

It is best served at 6-8oC. Dessert wine.

Tip: The shipping cost per bottle drops significantly the more bottles you buy. Join forces with friends and family to buy more bottles and bring the cost down.

Important notes:

-It is an offense to purchase or attempt to purchase alcoholic liquor if you are under the age of 18.
-The price includes safe packaging cost

About Gavalas Winery 

The Gavalas family has been exclusively engaged in the vinification of the indigenous varieties grown in Santorini, since the end of the 19th century. Up until the 1920s, the family produced wines from grapes grown in their privately-owned vineyards and vinted in their winery (canava) in Megalochori.

This production was mainly distributed to customers throughout the island of Santorini as well as being exported to the city of Alexandria, in Egypt. Later on, in the 1930s they started shipping the wine to Athens and Piraeus. The shipping procedure could be well described as a feast. From Canaves, mule – drivers loaded the goat-skins, filled with wine onto their mules, and carried them to the port of Fira, where they were transferred into barrels of 600 kgs (called bombs).

Then the barrels were loaded onto small boats (caiques) and were shipped to Piraeus. After the end of the 2nd World War and for the following 30 years, most of the Brusco wine was sold to the Kaloyannis distillery, where it was distilled into brandy and a lesser quantity was supplied to the Koniordos family and a number of taverns. In contrast, the Vinsanto wine was obtained by the churches and monasteries for Sacramental use.

In 1973 the Gavalas family established its own wine store in Athens which handled exclusively the sales and distribution, throughout Greece, of the main wines of Santorini: Nyhteri, Brusco, Mezzo, Mandilaria, and Vinsanto.

At the beginning o the 1980s, when the Boutaris company established its own winery on the island, the Gavalas family became the sole supplier of Vinsanto wine to Boutaris for a period of 6 years. For the first time in 1998 the Gavalas family bottled their own production of Vinsanto at their small, but modern winery (canava) in Megalochori. Following the long-standing tradition and experience of three centuries, the Gavalas family has been carrying out the vinification of the island’s indigenous varieties aiming to introduce wines of superior quality and unique characteristics for the international marketplace.