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Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $52.94 $55.20
12 bottles: $51.88
Blender Aista Jukneviciute finishes Celt in peated Islay quarter casks that enable the sooty charcoal smoke and...
12 FREE
WKY
91
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $57.00 $60.00
12 bottles: $54.72
This rather good after-dinner dram is finished in peated Islay whisky casks. It is not a peated Welsh whisky, but...
12 FREE
WKY
90
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $82.08 $86.40
12 bottles: $77.52
Subtle, well-judged port cask influence integrates well with the Penderyn spirit to produce an entrancing whisky....
12 FREE
WKY
91
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $70.68 $74.40
12 bottles: $66.12
12 FREE
Sale
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $43.94 $45.60
12 bottles: $41.04
The nose is alluring with almost a cotton candy note of barley sugar, pure vanilla, and only the faintest hints of...
12 FREE
UBC
88
Spirits
750ml
Bottle: $54.94
12 bottles: $47.88
12 FREE

Italian Red Blends Mavrodaphne Other Whiskey Wales

In the Archaea region, high in the Northern Peloponnese mountains, the predominant grape varietal grown is the prized Mavrodaphne. Meaning 'Black Laurel', the Mavrodaphne grapes have extremely dark skins, and ripen slowly under the Greek sunshine, helped by the mineral rich soils the vines thrive in. This grape varietal is mostly used to produce the opaque, inky fortified wine of the same name, which is popular all over Greece and elsewhere in the world. This fortified wine allows the grapes to really show off their complex and fascinating flavors, which range from a rich marzipan to flavors of bitter chocolate, sweet coffee, dried figs and prunes, as well as plenty of jammy fruit notes.

Mavrodaphne is produced in a traditional method which involves leaving the grape juice exposed to the sun in large vats, before having its fermentation halted by the addition of various distillates taken from previous successful vintages. This mixture contains plenty of residual sugar, which gives the end result its characteristic sticky sweetness, and also helps with the next fermentation process, which typically takes place in large underground cellars. The final product is a heady drink, absolutely bursting with unusual, rich and sweet flavors and carried in a dark and slightly viscous Port-like liquid.

Mavrodaphne grapes are also used for the production of still red wines, but are generally blended with varietals such as Agiorgitiko or imported grapes like Cabernet Sauvignon. Mavrodaphne grapes are excellent for mellowing more acidic varieties, and producing deliciously rounded wines, which have taken the international market by storm in recent decades.

Additional Information on Greek Wines


Greek Wines
Ancient Greek Wines – A Brief History of Wine in Greece
The Myth of Dionysus, Greek God of Wine
What is Retsina?