Rainy day wine memories on the road to Tsantali's Maronia Vineyard

Perhaps rainy day #winelover memories special. In this case our #winelover adventure to Thrace's Maronia Vineyard was changed to Plan B. That is, we did a wine tasting of Tsantali's Kanenas wines over lunch at a nearby restaurant. There we were introduced to Kanenas wines produced from their Maronia Vineyard. No way did we let those late spring showers dampen our spirits, as we ate lunch at a nearby Maronia restaurant.

#Winelover Memories, Greece © Spaswinefood

#Winelover Lunch, Maronia © Spaswinefood

During lunch I enjoyed the wonderful company of #winelover friends. Earlier Spaswinefood discovered that Kanenas wines tell amazing stories. Since ancient times people have been fascinated by the idea of finding a message in a bottle. Perhaps even more fascinating is the idea that Kanenas wines have also been described as a myth in a bottle. The label on the Kanenas wine bottle tells one such story:

The myth goes something like this, the Cyclops Polyphemus trapped Odysseus in a Maronia cave. In order to escape Odysseus offered Polyphemus the most precious Maronian wine. Polyphemus in return blinded Odysseus but allowed him to escape from the cave. As Odysseus was escaping Polypheus asked "who is it?". Odysseus response was “no one (Kanenas in Greek)”. Hence it is quite fitting to call the wines from Maronia Vineyard “Kanenas”.

Myth on the back label, Tsantali's Kanenas Red 2009 © Spaswinefood

It was an earlier Spaswinefood journey led me on a quest to learn about Kanenas wines. Greek wines, with their impressive history, fascinating myths and indigenous grape varieties are indeed a perfect wine journey. What I have discovered is that Kanenas wines are in fact wine messages in a bottle.

Maronia Vineyards © Photo Courtesy of Tsantali Archives

Maronia Vineyard Wines
As we ate lunch my imagination took me to the stunning Tsantali’s Maronia Vineyard, overlooking the Aegean Sea. The vineyards have been described, as resembling the shape of a large amphitheatre. Grapes grown in the Maronia Vineyard include the white grapes Malvasia, Muscat of Alexandria, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc; and the red grapes include Grenache Rouge, Merlot and Syrah. The indigenous grapes grown there include Limnio and Mavroudi. Wines produced in this region are within the Ismarikos Protected Geographical Indication.

Maronia Vineyard © Photo Courtesy of Tsantali Archives

Lunch with #Winelover Friends
Lunch brought back memories from my earlier introduction to Kanenas wines. Now let's take a look at our lunch, which created more memories, which I am sure will create stories for those in attendance.

Let's Start Lunch the Greek Way © Spaswinefood

For fish lovers there is always those special dishes.

Sea Bass Greek Style © Spaswinefood

But of course no meal is complete without desert. I was told that this is a typical Greek spoon desert. I think there is more than a spoonful here. 

Desert Greek Style © Spaswinefood

Surely, I need to mention the wines served in those special T:U Events wine glasses.

Kanenas Muscat of Alexandria - Chardonnay, Maronia Vineyards 2016 © Spaswinefood

During lunch we tasted three  Kanenas wines, a white, a rose and a red.

Tsantali's Kanenas Wines  2016 © Spaswinefood

Yes, Plan B worked quite well. Maybe next time I will luck out and visit the vineyards.

Other Kanenas Wines

The lunch wines were a great introduction. However, I must share two Kanenas wines that I tasted earlier. My first introduction to Kanenas wines were Kanenas White 2012 and Kanenas Red 2009 wines.

Tsantali's Kanenas Red 2009 and Kanenas White 2012 © Spaswinefood

Tsantali's Kanenas White 2012 and Kanenas Red 2009 © Spaswinefood

Kanenas white 2012: The Kanenas white 2012 is a blend Chardonnay and Muscat of Alexandria. In the separate vinification process for each grape variety attention is paid to its uniqueness. In particular air is excluded from the processing of the Muscat of Alexandria to preserve the delicate aromas. Special care is also taken with the Chardonnay prior to blending. This special care shows in the tasting giving it inviting aromas and an amazingly pleasant taste. It was love on first taste with this wine.

Tsantali's Kanenas White, Maronia Vineyards 2012  © Spaswinefood

Kanenas Red 2009: Kanenas red 2009 is produced from the indigenous grape variety Mavroudi is blended with Syrah, an international grape variety. The blend of this specific dry red wine is 50% Mavroudi and 50% Syrah. The Mavroudi is what gives this wine such a pleasant and unique taste. While you can easily pick up the special aromas on the nose it is the taste that captured my attention. I can definitely see why the cyclops was smitten by this wine. Given that wine can take some aging it will be interesting to explore this effect.

Tsantali's Kanenas Red, Maronia Vineyards 2009 © Spaswinefood

The history of vineyards in Maronia, Thrace date back over 3,000 years. Today's Tsantali Maronia Vineyard obviously continue the tradition of producing great wines.

Maronia Vineyard © Photo Courtesy of Tsantali Archives

It has been so much fun to continue to exploring the messages in Kanenas's wine bottles. When I am not exploring wine bottle messages I am off exploring Spaswinefood happenings. During an earlier wine safari in Northern Greece I had the good fortune of visiting Tsantali's Rapsani Mount Olympus Vineyards. I just know there must be a wine goddess/god calling me to taste more Greek wines soon. Spaswinefood is looking forward to more stops along the Greek Wine Trails. Check out my travels at Spaswinefood. 

Sharon

May 2017

Maronia, Greece

© Spaswinefood

Restaurant, Maronia © Spaswinefood

Follow me on Twitter and Facebook

Special thanks to T:U Events for its excellent organization of our #winelover adventures in Thrace. Inquiries about the purchase of these wines in the US can be made at Fantis Imports Inc. (Fantis Foods).