Guest Post - GAIA Wines Santorini & Nemea 2011 Harvest

This post will focus on GAIA Wines report of the harvest on both Santorini & Nemea.  On Santorini they produce the Thalassitis and Assyrtiko Wild Ferment.  Their main winery in Nemea produces the rest of the company's wines.  You can follow the winery on Twitter @GaiaWines.

GAIA Wines 2011 Harvest Report

Santorini 2011.

The main characteristic of the vintage was that July & August were rather fresh if compared to other years.  Probably the second coldest summer of the decade on the island, after the one of 2009.

That  resulted in rather slow maturation speed, fact that had a direct impact on the Assyrtiko attributes.

Grapes were extremely healthy, with a crisp acidity & minerality, as they always normally do. The bonus that derived form this rather “fresh” summer was the increase of the aromatic intensity. Wines have a more distinct fruitiness than what they do on a “conventional” harvest, such as 2010.

Nemea 2011.

An average to good vintage. An unusually wet spring led to a drop of production by an average of -25% (in some cases it drop even reached a staggering -40%) due to ravaging mildew infection.

Some sub-area of Nemea such as Koutsi or Asprocambos were exempted, mainly because of their elevation and the beneficial drying winds that prevail in these areas. In those areas Agiorgitiko matured slowly and reached good levels of sugars and polyphenols .

Pleasant aromas, soft tannins and a rather medium structure synthesize this 2011 vintage.  Definitely not as aromatic as the 2006, nor as structured as a 2007, or “accomplished” as a 2008, it remains far better that a 2009 and probably slightly inferior to a 2010.

   

Yiannis Paraskevopoulos, Owner & Oenologist GAIA Wines