Sigalas releases seven-village Assyrtiko collection

Santorini winery Domaine Sigalas has released an ‘experimental’ collection of seven Assyrtiko wines from seven different villages in a bid to highlight differences in the volcanic island’s terroir.

Domaine Sigalas is aiming to highlight the terroir differences of Santorini’s winegrowing villages with its limited edition Epta Assyrtiko collection (Photo: Domaine Sigalas)

Named Sigalas Epta, the collection contains seven 100% Assyrtiko from vineyards in the villages of Oia, Vourvoulos, Imerovigli, Fira, Pyrgos, Megalochori and Akrotiri.

Only 1,000 cases of the Sigalas Epta have been produced and have all been allocated. The grapes from each village have been vinified separately in stainless steel tanks and aged for 12 months on the lees before bottling.

The main indigenous grape of Santorini, which has been protected by PDO status since 1971, Assyrtiko has developed a cult following among wine critics and enthusiasts owing to its concentration, high acidity, ageability and perceived ‘minerality’.

Assyrtiko from Santorini is grown on volcanic soils consisting of compact lava rock, sand and pumice stone. Many of the island’s Assyrtiko vines are ungrafted and unaffected by phylloxera, which is unable to survive in its soils.

Export director Panayiota Kalogeropoulou explained that the average age of vines at Domaine Sigalas is 60-70 years, though some are as old as 120 years old, having been planted by the great, great grand-father of the estate’s owner and winemaker, Pari Sigalas.

Certain sites in Santorini are thought to have been in continuous use for viticulture for 3,000 years, back to the time of the Minoans, who are thought to have established a thriving wine trade in the settlement of Akrotiri on the island before a catastrophic volcanic eruption led to its destruction around 1627BCE.

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“The system and the pruning that we are following is at least 500 years old,” she added. “Everything takes place by hand. Vines are trained by hand so that the clusters of grapes are grown in a basket [the traditional kouloura vine training system in Santorini – see main image], which protects the grapes from the sun and from the strong winds.

“Also there is no irrigation. The pumice stones absorb the humidity that’s created every night because we are surrounded by the sea. The pumice stones exist in different layers and moisturise the vines whenever it is needed.

“We are causing a stress to the vine – that’s why we receive very intense flavours in the wines, and the very thick skins which helps with aromatic complexity.”

The combination of very old vines and high vine stress give rise to extremely limited yields, with Sigalas vineyards producing on average around 30hl/ha, or 2.2 tonnes of grapes per acre. To put that in context, the limit set for Burgundy Grand Crus is 35-37hl/ha.

The Domaine Sigalas ‘Epta’ range

Kalogeropoulou said that while the volcanic soil was a defining factor of Santorini Assyrtiko, it was not the most important variable to consider when tasting the wines from the seven different Santorini villages.

“I would say that there are differences in the soil, thought they are not that huge differences,” she explained. “In the layers under the surface [of the soils], mostly it’s the same.”

Most soil in Santorini is  combination of lava stone, pumice and sand over limestone and schist bedrock. What is more important in identifying differences between the seven villages are factors such as aspect, slope, altitude and microclimate, Kalogeropoulou said.

Kalogeropoulou said that the slow evolution of Santorini Assyrtiko meant it would not be possible to properly assess the differences between the different villages for several years yet.

“For us right now it’s a game,” she said, “but after five years we could find the similarities or the differences between the villages.”

Domaine Sigalas wines are imported into the UK through Berry Brothers & Rudd, and Maltby & Greek.