ATMA Red Xinomavro Mandilaria PGI Imathia 2019 Thymiopoulos Vineyards
CHF 15.00
Apostolos Thimiopoulos, one of the most revered winemakers in Greece, is well known for his excellent work in Naoussa but in recent years he has also been active in Santorini. ATMA red is a unique blend of Xinomavro from Naoussa and Mandilaria from Santorini. Mandilaria is a grape full of character and aggression and given Xinomavro’s reputation as a tannic variety, you would expect this to be a tannic brute but this wine is anything but! This strange coexistence of the two major winemaking zones in the bottle gave a bright dark ruby red wine that is soft and succulent and remarkably fresh with an abundance of red fruits on the nose and palate: strawberries, cherries, blackberries, pomegranate, white pepper. Its medium body and fresh acidity make ATMA an incredibly easy to drink wine. And becomes even more enjoyable if served at near white wine temperatures (13-15° C), enhancing its concentration without making it aggressive. A tremendous wine for its price!
Food Pairing: Chicken casserole, meatballs with tomato, hunkiar beyendi or even a Chinese meat dish with hoisin sauce will create a comforting mood next to it!
Description
Grape Varieties: 70% Xinomavro 30% Mandilaria
Vinification: Xinomavro is dried outside for 3 days, softening and concentrating its flavours and giving depth and complexity that you rarely find in an everyday red wine. Mandilaria goes through a slow and gentle maceration in stainless steel tanks, taming the grape’s rustic side and leaving just a pinch of structural tannins.
Alcohol level: 13% vol
Tasting Note: Apostolos Thimiopoulos, one of the most revered winemakers in Greece, is well known for his excellent work in Naoussa but in recent years he has also been active in Santorini. ATMA red is a unique blend of Xinomavro from Naoussa and Mandilaria from Santorini. Mandilaria is a grape full of character and aggression and given Xinomavro’s reputation as a tannic variety, you would expect this to be a tannic brute but this wine is anything but! This strange coexistence of the two major winemaking zones in the bottle gave a bright dark ruby red wine that is soft and succulent and remarkably fresh with an abundance of red fruits on the nose and palate: strawberries, cherries, blackberries, pomegranate, white pepper. Its medium body and fresh acidity make ATMA an incredibly easy to drink wine. And becomes even more enjoyable if served at near white wine temperatures (13-15° C), enhancing its concentration without making it aggressive. A tremendous wine for its price!
Food Pairing: Chicken casserole, meatballs with tomato, hunkiar beyendi or even a Chinese meat dish with hoisin sauce will create a comforting mood next to it!
Naoussa – Central Macedonia – 50 hectares – organic cultivation (certified, but not mentioned on the label)
The Thymiopoulos family has been in agriculture and grape-growing in the village of Trilofos for generations. Apostolos Thymiopoulos was the first to vinify the family vineyards while studying enology. In 2005, he produced his first wine named “Earth and Sky”. He truly believes in sustainable viticulture and minimum intervention during the whole winemaking process. His methods incorporate organic and biodynamic practices; guinea fowls and turkeys are used for pest control and the use of herbicides is avoided. In the winery, fermentation is carried out using wild yeasts and the wines are bottled unfiltered, with only the minimum addition of sulfur. Apostolos devotes himself exclusively to Xinomavro, the emblematic variety of the Naoussa region, a difficult grape that expresses “terroir” as well as the craftsmanship of the “vigneron”. And what a craftsman he is! Almost all of his wines have over 90/100 Parker points and Jancis Robinson raves about them.
