2016 Hatzidakis Winery Assyrtiko Cuvée No.15

Community Tasting Notes (19) Avg Score: 91.6 points

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  4/6/2024 - Daj_123 wrote: 90 Points

  Very dark straw yellow. To my surprice - remember I had this at release and it was quite green hayish back then. Now it seems to have just passed the top. Nose confirm: very toasty and hints of Sherry.
  
  But palate is indeed very lively. Powerful and perfect match for a typical danish lunch table.

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  6/19/2022 - GuWin wrote: 94 Points

  Honninggul. Oljete med godt heng. Nydelig duft! Først litt svovel og fyrstikkrøyk, det blåser av og åpner for en moden, fyldig og tett duft av nektariner, fersken, smørmalt. Leter etter saltvann og sitrus men finner det ikke, derimot har vi modne chablisaktige toner av tang og tare og sjøvann.
  Veldig rik og nesten oljete tekstur. Aldeles nydelig, full av gule frukttoner - gule plommer, nektariner, moden sitrus, honningtoner og et streif av smørmalt og bitre appelsiner (Bennett’s). Stor konsentrasjon, nå kjenner jeg et lite saltvannsstreif! Dette er ‘Next level’ assyrtiko. Så kompleks, rik, fyldig. Fet og oljete som en Corton Charlemagne, syre som en moden Keller GG. Konsistens som en sauternes, men uten sødmen selvsagt. Usedvanlig lang smakskurve. Dette topper antageligvis de yngre Argyros Cuvée Monsignori. Tror jeg må gi 94 poeng her. Kanskje mer.

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  2/5/2022 - LW31 wrote:

  Great fan of their wines but this one was a little harder to love. An orange wine like quality with its weight and savory finish. A little weightier than I expected. Good food wine but lacking energy

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  12/8/2021 - forceberry wrote: 93 Points

  Made with organically grown Assyrtiko grapes. Macerated with the skins for 12 hours, fermented spontaneously and aged on its lees for 8 months in stainless steel. Bottled unfiltered with minimum effective sulfites. 14% alcohol. Tasted blind.
  
  Quite intense and still relatively youthful neon yellow-green color. At first the nose feels somewhat toasty with rather pronounced smoky notes of struck match. The smoky notes subside a little as the wine opens up in the glass, but not entirely, revealing aromas of ripe white peach, some leesy notes, a little bit of salty ocean air and a hint of something vaguely waxy. The wine feels taut yet somewhat waxy and quite concentrated yet surprisingly light-bodied at the same time on the palate with intense, pretty high-strung and moderately bitter flavors of ripe golden apples, some honeyed tones, a little bit of apple peel bitterness, light chalky mineral tones, a hint of leesy character and a touch of ripe white peach. The pronounced racy acidity lends great intensity and sense of structure to the wine. The finish is lively, long and fresh with rather mineral flavors of intense lemony citrus fruits and apple peel bitterness, some smoky volcanic notes, a little bit of fresh white peach, light chalky mineral tones, a hint of honeyed richness and a touch of tangy salinity that seems to grow in intensity towards the end of the aftertaste.
  
  A wonderful, crisp and focused Assyrtiko that feels rather closed and very smoky upon opening - to the extent that at first I thought this was a Burgundy with somewhat noticeable toasted oak character lending the wine its toasty, smoky character. Only on the palate it became obvious that Burgundy it was not - next I thought it was an oaked Rías Baixas, due to its rather pronounced phenolic bitterness and lemony flavors of tart citrus fruits. Once the smoky tones subsided some more, the wine didn't feel oaky at all anymore and at that point I was at a loss - I really didn't have any idea what this wine was and where it could have come from. Boy did I feel stupid once it was released that the wine was a Hatzidakis Assyrtiko, as it was so textbook high-quality Assyrtiko. Oh well, better luck next time! All in all, this was a terrific example of Assyrtiko, but based on its lean and rather tightly-knit nature, I'd say it is in dire need of further aging. If opened now, I heartily recommend letting the wine breathe for an hour or two.

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  11/25/2021 - Aris1a Likes this wine: 92 Points

  Balanced, focused, with substantial body. Pronounced minerality, and acidity. Citrus, herbal notes, very complex and lost lasting finish. Planning to hold on to my remaining 10 bottles and see how this evolves.

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