Over the past year, one wine region that I’ve fallen in love with is Greece. Unfortunately, I don’t find many Greek wines on the shelves in my neighborhood, but those that I’ve tasted have been delicious — and this wine from Tsantali is no exception.
It’s made from 60% Chardonnay and 40% Muscat of Alexandria. I’m pretty sure you’re familiar with Chardonnay, but you may not know Muscat of Alexandria. As you might guess from the name, it’s part of the Muscat family (there are several types of Muscat). It’s considered one of the oldest genetically-unmodified grape varieties in existence. There are many different names for this grape in different parts of the world, my favorite of which is “Zibibbo” as they call it in Sicily. But whatever name you call it, it’s a magical grape in my eyes.
Muscat of Alexandria is considered less aromatic than some other types of Muscat, such as Muscat Blanc. But it still has some of those perfumey Muscat aromatics. The blend of Chardonnay and Muscat of Alexandria complement each other nicely, resulting in a wine with pleasant aromatics and tasty stone fruit flavors.
Like the Kanenas red blend that I previously reviewed, the grapes for this wine come from the Maroneia region in Northern Greece, along the Aegean Sea.
The nose is very delicate, offering only subtle green apple, almond and floral aromas. The palate is elegant, well balanced and delightful, with flavors such as white peach, pear and green apple. The acidity is spot on. It finishes relatively long with lingering peach and pear flavors. This is a very nice wine.
Wine: Tsantali, Kanenas
Variety: 60% Chardonnay, 40% Muscat of Alexandria
Vintage: 2012
Alcohol: 12.5%
Rating: 88
Price: $20.00
Disclosure: This wine was received as a media sample.