WINE OF THE WEEK: Argyrakis Áti white, Imathia, Macedonia, Greece

£25.90, Koul Agency

If I was looking for a really unusual, obscure wine this week, I wouldn’t have had to look any further, but I wasn’t. I was choosing my Wine of the Week in the usual way: something delicious that seems to me to represent good value whatever its price, maybe with an added point of interest.

Having said that I think that Argyrakis Áti is delicious, I can see that anyone who likes their dry white wines to be neutral in flavour and light bodied might not find this unusual Greek wine entirely to their taste.

It's very aromatic and distinctive, with a perfume of fragrant roses and Turkish delight that reminds me a little of both Gewürztraminer and Muscat, although neither of those grape varieties is part of the blend.

The palate has the soft texture of peach skin and a slight oiliness and the exotic notes of rose petal and Turkish delight are refreshingly counterbalanced by lime (an echo of Riesling) and a hint of bitterness.

Argyrakis Áti comes from the Trilofos area of Naoussa in Macedonia in northern Greece, but Naoussa is an appellation (PDO) for reds only made from the Xinomavro grape, so this white is a PGI Imathia (PGI rules, like Vin de Pays, are less rigid).

In fact, there is Xinomavro in this wine, 20% vinified as a white wine (aka blanc de noirs) blended with two of Greece’s star white varieties, Malagousia (50%) and Assyrtiko (30%).

I wonder what candidates would make of it in terms of country, region and grape varieties if it was one of the wines in the white-wine blind tasting for the Master of Wine exam? I would love to know.

Argyrakis is a small family-owned and run winery focused on both sustainability and innovation. The vineyards are cultivated biodynamically and the winery, powered by photovoltaic panels, is energy self sufficient.

I thought the white Áti might be slightly tricky to pair with food, but it turned out to be a good wine with dishes with spices and/or a lot of flavour elements. To give a couple of examples: it went very with a salad of red chicory, barrel-aged feta, fresh orange, lightly toasted pumpkin seeds and lemon, caper and honey vinaigrette; and with pork with Chinese five-spice (star anise, cinnamon, fennel seeds, ginger and Szechuan peppercorns). It’s also a delight as an aperitif. 13%. Empty bottle weight: 475g

Argyrakis Áti 2023, Imathia, Macedonia, Greece

£25.90, koulagency.com

#wine #Greece #Malagousia #Assyrtiko #Xinomavro #wineandfood #winepairing #white