September 15, 2018 - The wine pours a youthful dark purple, aromas of ripe purple fruits, lilac, and licorice root-earth, with this kinda weird yeastiness going on. In the mouth the wine is pretty tannic up front, full bodied, but tannin forward. There is a softness, almost saline quality to the wine after the initial assault of the tannins. At this point, the wine gains a sort of yeasty character- I don't really care for this, and hopefully it will blow off, seems over-pitched, though I know nothing of their winemaking process. The wine finishes with a earthy-tar note that I really like, reminds me of aglianico or sagrantino, but more fruit. Needs food!
February 10, 2018 - Decanting is advisable as it had a bit of undiluted gas on the palate.
Dark colour, bright, glossy. Red fruited on the nose , decent amount of well used oak, quite open but not really singing nose. On the palate its fresh and on the young side relatively but fails to make an impression. A good wine but for the moment at least not great. 87
April 29, 2017 - Wine tasting in Greece; 4/28/2017-5/6/2017 (Athens, Santorini and Porto Heli): This has an expressive nose of red fruits and earth - nice aromatics. Tastes of tart crunchy red fruits with a lot of earthy minerality on the finish. Quite nice and reminds me a bit of some Etta Rosso with its bright acidity, lighter body and minerality. Very good QPR and quite enjoyable. My first time with these grape varieties which we are sampling while on holiday in Santorini.
Also tried on tasting visit at Domaine Sigalas. Learned that they are experimenting and are the only winery on the island growing their red grapes using a trellis system. They found that the basket system was producing grapes that were too tannic. Interesting as this ended up being our favorite of the red wines sampled on the island. Mavrotagno is apparently a highly tannic grape with very thick skins, the trellis structure allows more sun exposure and breaks down some of the tannins in the skin.
March 19, 2017 - Belle robe rubis moyenne+ soutenue. Au nez, c'est très original. On y trouve des fruits rouges et noirs (raisin) et confiture de prune, mais aussi le côté minéral de Santorin. Une touche d'encre aussi. En bouche, l'attaque est franche avec des tannins très serrés, très présents mais d'une bonne finesse. Le tout suivi par le beau fruité avec une bonne vivacité pour équilibrer. Ce sont les tannins qui m'épatent, tout en étant fin. C'est un vin qui a besoin d'un steak ou de courage. J'aime bien - à regoûter un example qui a 5-8 ans d'âge. Hors norme (stylistiquement). Après quelques heures, je commence à noter des arômes de "nail polish remover". Hmmm...
October 22, 2016 - My previous tasting notes still apply.
July 24, 2016 - Labeled as Mm. A blend of Mavrotragano (60%) and Mandilaria (40%). Part aged in French oak barrels, part aged in stainless steel. Alc. 13,5%.
Quite clear and translucent dark cherry color. Very expressive, sweet nose rich in interesting aromatics: cherry and blackberry marmalade, curious floral nuances, some pepper, allspice and a little bit of roasted Asian spices. Light, lively and fresh palate with high acidity, some sense of concentration and rather prominent tannins. Dry, vibrant and nicely crunchy flavors of lingonberry, sour cherry, some peppery spice, a little blackberry jam and a hint of sour plums. Very lively and vibrant finish with bright acidity and tart lingonberry and sour cherry notes, some clove nuances, fruit flavors ranging from ripe to sour and unripe plums and a small hint of spicy oak. Good, astringent grip from the tannins.
This is a very nice little red with almost Cru Beaujolais-like bright fruit and vibrancy combined with grippy tannic structure of a young Barbaresco. Not the most complex or serious red, but definitely something new and very interesting - due to the Mandilaria and Mavrotragano aromatics that are so unorthodox to one unfamiliar with Santorini reds. With its intense structure I can see some cellaring potential in the wine as well. Very good allrounder with different kinds of dishes, but probably not that enoyable on its own with its grippy tannins; an excellent purchase at 13,70€ at the winery.