Santorini Wine Tours
Our Santorini wine tours are a blend of history, culture, gastronomy, and of course great wine. This spectacular island and its ring of smaller islands are the result of a massive volcanic eruption some 3500 years ago which originally would have formed a complete crater ring. Today the ring is broken into separate islands with Santorini being the largest. The ancient Minoan site of Akrotiri is found in the southern part of Santorini.
During your time on the island, you will enjoy a number of private tours of vineyards and wineries, showing the unusual basket “Kouloura” vine training system, and get to taste some of the indigenous wines. Of course, you will also get to visit Akrotiri and try some great food along the way.
In order to form the vines into the Kouloura shape, very experienced local pruning teams train the canes of the vine into a large wreath or basket shape which sits directly on the island’s volcanic soil. As the vegetative states appear the flowers and later the grapes are sheltered within their woven basket homes. The vines in Santorini have a number of extreme climate factors to deal with such as strong winds, scorching sunshine plus thin volcanic, arid soils, so the basket training style helps combat these a little and traps the moisture from night fogs.
Arrival in Santorini
What you do here depends on you. Remember all of our tours are tailor-made to your wishes and budget (or as close as possible at least!). You will have some non-wine related activities suggested to you, or you may already have those earmarked.
When our clients arrive at a new wine destination we offer the chance to have an introductory tasting the night before they head out into the vineyards. We will pick an atmospheric wine bar where you can enjoy a flight of wines from across the island, showing a spectrum of styles. You will have some Meze to accompany the wines to show some pairings, Meze is the Greek version of Tapas, tasty bite-sized portions of local food.
Out into the vineyards
We suggest taking two day tours so you can see a whole range of different terroir and wines on offer, we will arrange lunch at wineries or local restuarants plus a cooking class and a historical visit. If there is anything else you would like blended in just let us know.
Walk among the unusual woven basket vines on Santorini, and taste the resulting wine
A sample tour itinerary could look like this:
We will pick you up after your leisurely breakfast, we will not rush you on our wine tours (unless you have a train or plane to catch of course!). Your first visit today might well be the ancient ruins at Akrotiri, where you can stretch your legs and imagination before starting your wine adventures. We will guide you around these ancient Minoan ruins and your guide will teach you a little about successive layers of civilizations and the subsequent destruction of the city.
We will then head off to our first winery for a full tour of the vineyards, production facilities, and a premium tasting. We aim to give you a full picture of Santorini wines and you will taste 10 to 12 wines throughout the day, plus whatever you might choose to drink at lunch. The wineries will be chosen by us and our local partners unless you have a specific request. Two or three wineries will be visited each day, depending on your non-wine choices and our schedule. Lunch will be enjoyed at one of the wineries, where you may decide to have a wine pairing lunch, such as the one at Sigalas which involves 6 courses with 6 wines.
Venetsanos winery is another place we may taste at. This was the first industrial-scale winery on the island, constructed in 1947, and was designed to use gravity instead of pumping. Today using less pumping is a way to protect the wine, but at Venetsanos this was originally done due to the lack of electricity. The location and views here are truly breathtaking, we will enjoy a tasting and snack on some mezes here at some point during your two days, that’s for sure.
Gavalas winery is another favorite on our Santorini wine tours and provides a nice contrast between traditional and modern production methods at one venue. The winery has a focus on Assyrtiko which is a classic grape for Santorini of course, but the winemaker has also included some rarer indigenous grapes like Katsano, Voudomato, and Mavrotragano in their portfolio. A premium tasting here will include trying 9 different wines produced by Gavalas.
Try a Greek Cooking Class
By now you know that Greek food is varied and very tasty, plus it is extremely healthy. So maybe give yourself a chance to learn how to prepare a few classic dishes so you can enjoy them at home, paired with some of the wines you are trying along the way that you are sure to carry back on the plane.
Depending on where you choose to have your cooking classes, and please feel free to rely on our suggestions, you will learn about and create several Greek dishes from fresh local ingredients. The venue for your classes might be a winery, a restaurant, or a private house, there are several options on offer. So you will be instructed, prepare, and cook, and then eat your creations under the watchful eye of a local chef. Of course, we will make sure you are fully lubricated with local wine.
A Little Ancient History? Or maybe something active?
Greece is the cradle of the modern western world and no try to the mainland or any of the islands would be complete without a tour of ancient archaeological sites. On Santorini a must-do visit is Akrotiri, but you also have Byzantine castle ruins and several ancient Thera attractions. There are plenty of cerebral activities to keep you stimulated in-between sipping and eating sessions on our Santorini wine tours.
And on that note, you might need to work off a little food and drink so we can offer some active options also. Gentle, or not so gentle hiking might be your thing? Kite surfing, snorkeling, sea kayak, mountain biking, or even scuba diving can be arranged. Of course, if you are like some of us and are happy to just drink, eat and kick back then there is no better place to enjoy that. Let us know what you are thinking and we can blend all the elements into one package with accommodation and flights if needs be. Remember that Greece can be easily combined with other wine tours in the region such as Turkey or Israel.
