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 Viticulture area: approx. 29,000 hectares Wine production: approx. 2 million hectoliters Central Greece, in the modern era, finds herself caught between a long and rich enological history and the pressures of high standards brought on by the current revolution in the wine industry. While geological features are varied and conducive to viticulture, the extreme hot climate places limitations on style. Since the region becomes more forbiddingly mountainous towards the west, it is in the eastern reaches in which commercial winemaking is practised, including the large coastal island Evia and Attika, the area around Athens. Along the immediate coast, some ocean breezes can be counted upon to mitigate the effects of high temperatures, but heat reigns as the defining factor in grape production. The fact that heat-friendly varieties are in place has helped considerably, but the continued popularity of retsina in Greece and throughout the world has been a disincentive for traditional companies to pursue products and methods that agree with foreign tastes. That is changing now. Modern methods are being applied and more indigenous and foreign varieties are being planted. Still, the hype surrounding all that has happened in Greece during the last ten years seems often to focus on other areas. Central Greece is the traditional stronghold of retsina and plantings are dominated by the Savatianó variety, from which retsina has been most commonly vinified. Savatiano accounts for most of the production in Attika (roughly 90%), a majority in Evia (around 75%) and half of production in Voetia. The Savatianó, historically, was never the exclusive basis for retsina, and until phyloxera arrived in central Greece between the first and second World Wars, was just one of a number of white varieties grown in the region. Today, the Savatianó owes its dominance less to historical preeminance than to the need to replenish vineyards with a highly productive variety suitable to the climate. Although the grape is characterized by low acidity, it at least has had the advantage of displaying some varietal character when resinated. Low yield farming and modern vinification have resulted in quality un-resinated mono-varietal versions of Savatianó that display the best attributes of the grape. Even Savatianó retsinas have been aided by laws limiting resination to .15-1 kg of Allepo resin per hectoliter of wine. The variety has been–and continues to be–a superior blending grape and is used as such extensively with great success. The other chief variety in the region, Roditis, is a migrant from Thessaly, the region lying between Voetia and Makedonia. The grape is frequently described as "pinkish", meaning more that it produces a true skins-on rosé than that its wines qualify in any sense as blancs de gris. Widely employed, not surprisingly, in rosé, it also produces superior fruity wines when grown at higher elevations and contributes a ripe component when blended with other varieties. Other white grapes in production in the region include; Asyrtiko, Athiri, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. Red grape production is limited, but Cabernet is quickly becoming the variety of choice for new plantings. The middle and western parts of the region have little commercial wine production. |
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