Fed up with drinking Pinot Grigio or Sauvignon Blanc and fancy trying a white with a bit of a difference?
If so, this Cretan wine (yes I said Cretan) made from 100% Dafni –an ancient indigenous variety found only on this Greek Island – is one to try.
I first came across this wine during my studies and asked recently by a friend for an ‘unusual’ wine to take to a wine tasting I had no hesitation in recommending it – and by all accounts it was the most popular wine of the evening!
On the nose this wine has lots of lemony citrus with a slightly bitter almost grapefruit pith aroma, white flowers and a rather unusual but quite intense leafy/herbal edge which is perhaps not surprising since the name Dafni comes from the Greek for a Bay or Laurel tree.
On the palate it is a dry, medium bodied wine which has a lovely refreshing acidity. The leafy, herbal notes and lemony zestiness follows through from the nose and the result is an aromatic, fresh wine that would work as an aperitif or as an accompaniment to white meat or fish dishes, particularly those using herbs.
So if you fancy being a bit adventurous or surprising your friends with a wine they have probably never heard of, give this one a go, it’s worth it. Available at Marks & Spencer for £10.
I think I may give this one a go, sounds interesting!
Hi Cath, it’s not as aromatic as a Sauvignon Blanc but it is worth a try for something a bit different.
Omg they have veagon wines. I did not know that they sometimes use fish swim bladders to filter wine sounds a bit fishy. Is this widespread?
Thanks Adrian, yes I see what you are doing with the ‘fishy’ analogy! But in all seriousness, yes some wines use Isinglass as a fining/clarifying agent in wine making. Ultimately though, none of this remains in the final wine so would be fine for vegans/vegetarians to drink, however some find just using the animal product in the winemaking process as unacceptable.