We spent a fabulous Sunday visiting 2 vineyards (complete with tastings at both) in the famous wine producing region of Nemea with Greece2Taste in the driver’s seat.
Greece2Taste is a local group that offers Greek food and wine experiences for visitors and locals who are interested in really immersing themselves in the Greek food and wine culture.
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Getting to Nemea
We met up with our tour guides and the rest of the group from Travel Bloggers Greece at the centrally located Katehaki metro station on a Sunday morning. We boarded the bus and off we went! Next stop– wine country! Nemea is just 1.5 hours away from Athens in the Peloponnese region of Greece. It was the perfect distance to be totally out of the city, but not spend all day getting there.
On the bus ride there, Panos from Greece2Taste gave us some background about the region and the wines that grow there. I had met Panos before when I did their wine tasting experience. All of Greece2Taste’s experience are available in English or Greek if desired.
Domaine Bairaktaris
Our first stop was at Domaine Bairaktaris/Κτήμα Μπαϊρακτάρη just outside of the town, Nemea. This Greek winery is located in a beautiful setting with it’s vineyards located beneath a small mountain range. The soil and climate combination is what makes Nemea the perfect setting for growing the Agiorgitiko grape.
Our guide, Yannis, who is the heir to the Bairaktaris wine business gave us some specifics about the Nemea wine business as well as his family business. His father was a farmer before getting into the wine business. He knew the land and soil very well, so he gave winemaking a go and was very successful at it.
After the introduction, he took us into the mechanical room and walked us through the various steps of production. This was very interesting to see as I’ve never been on a winery tour before! The group asked questions and Yannis was happy to answer them.
After the production tour and also a visit to the cellar, it was time to taste. They had a lovely table set for us in an enclosed patio area. Snacks were included and the table was littered with a few spitting bucket which I just find to be wasteful!
He explained each wine as we tried them and we also had a guide to follow along with. I was so excited to use my wine tasting skills that I had learned the previous week at the Greek2Taste wine tasting event.
Palivou Estate
Our second stop was a bit further out of town at Palivou Estate/Κτήμα Παλυβού. This estate has the look of a French Chateau transported into the middle of the Peloponnese region. Charming, regal and not far from Athens. There were some Athenians purchasing cases of wine and loading up their car when we arrived. I like their style.
We started our tour in a gazebo overlooking the vineyards. Our guide, Katerina, is a member of this wine producing family and gave us some information about the vines and the care that goes into maintaining them year after year.
Although this was our second vineyard, she didn’t really overlap on any of the information that we had learned at our previous stop. She focused on the growing process which made me reflect and feel thankful for all of the hard work that has gone into the wine I have consumed over the years.
Tasting Time! At this winery we were in a cool storage room to do our tasting. They had nice little tables set up with cold cuts, cheese and bread and those silly spitting buckets again. The same drill – she explained the wine, we sipped, nodded like we knew what we were doing… and repeat.
Sofos Georgios Restaurant
After the two winery visits and tastings, we headed for the town of Nemea for lunch. And this was not just any lunch, but a lunch with Greek cuisine served with perfectly paired Greek wine. WOOWHOO!
Sofos Georgios served us an unforgettable meal! In fact, I’m going to stop writing this and go leave them a Tripadvisor review right now while you look at this lovely Greek food porn.
Dakos Salad
Kokkoras Krasatos (rooster in wine sauce)
Custard (with a caramelly wine reduction sauce)
Ancient Nemea
After lunch we visited the archeological site of Ancient Nemea. Leo from Greece2Taste did a great job of explaining the history to us! For you, I’ll just leave this little link here > www.ancient.eu/nemea
There was definitely some napping on the way home after this fun, wine and food filled day.
It was really a wonderful day trip out of Athens and Greece2Taste thought of it all – the wineries, the lunch and a little touch of Greek history. Fabulous!
I still (perhaps not for long) have a few fun souvenirs to remember the day.
- Bairaktaris : Monolithos White 2016
- Bairaktaris : Semi-Sweet Red 2009
- Palivou : Agiorgitiko Red 2015
- Palivou : Bee Rosé
Greece2Taste
Website: www.Greece2Taste.com
Email: bookings@greece2taste.com
Telephone: 693 691 8596
Facebook: www.facebook.com/Greece2taste
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