Malvasia,  The Renowned Wine Yesterday and Today

by Stavroula Kourakou-Dragona

Translation: Alexandra Douma
Foinikas Publications
Published in 2020

Cloth hardcover edition, 232 pages, 21×28 cm

Table of contents

MONEMVÁSIOS OÍNOS – MALVASIA
The wine type
Methods of production
1. Sun-dried grapes
2. Grapes dried on the vine branches
3. The timelessness of traditional methods
4. Groundless hypotheses

THE GRAPE VARIETY MONEMVASIÁ – MALVASIA
1. Monemvasiá in Crete
2. Monovasiá in the Cycladic islands
3. The climate and the vinestocks

THE GRAPE VARIETIES MALVASIA IN NAME
1. Greek white grape varieties
2. Varieties with coloured grapes
3. Malvasia di Candia – athíri

THE VINTAGE
1. Treading floors in Crete
2. Marc presses in Crete
3. Must and vinum mustum
4. Treading floors in Monemvasia
5. Barrels for must and wine

TREATMENTS
1. Stabilizing wines
2. Concentrating must – vini cotti
3. Racking – use of the ornela
4. Mixing wines

MALVASIA OF MONEMVASIA OR WINES OF MALEVIZI?
1. Bartholomeo di Paxi’s lists
2. Conclusions of modern studies
3. The Castle of Violets
4. The testimonies of poetry

THE CHARACTERS OF MALVASIA WINE
1. The colour
2. The aroma
a. The enigma of the aroma of malvasia
b. The aromas of wines
c. Natural ageing
d. Artificial ageing
3. The reason why muscat wines prevailed
4. The sweetness of the taste

MALVASIA WINES IN NAME, IN THE WEST
1. Distillates
2. Aromatizing the wines
3. Vins de liqueur
a. Malvazia, luxury vin de liqueur
b. Naturally sweet wines and liquor wines
4. The lookalike of malvasia
5. Artificial malvasia

ASCERTAINMENTS

APPENDIX I
Brief history of Monemvasia
1. Timeline by centuries
2. Provenance of the name Malvasia

APPENDIX II
Modern Greek malvasia wines
1. Delimiting regions – defining varieties
2. Ministerial Decisions
a. Types of malvasia wines
b. Boiled wines
c. Other provisions – ageing
d. The varietal factor
3. The birthplace of Monemvasia-Malvasia
4. The historicity of the toponym Chandax-Candia