100% Agiorgitiko

Food pairing: grilled lamb chops, braised veal or beaf stifado, moussaka or pastitsio (pictured above), Peking duck or roast goose, spicy meatballs or spicy tagine, aged and salty cheese

Semeli Estate (pictured above) was founded in 1979 with a focus on producing high-quality Greek wines by combining traditional viticulture with modern winemaking. Its early vineyards were established near Mount Penteli, before the estate expanded into the Peloponnese, particularly Nemea and Mantinia.

A major step came in 2003, when Semeli opened its modern winery in Koutsi, Nemea, at about 600 meters elevation. The gravity-fed facility was designed to work with the hillside and minimize mechanical handling of the grapes. Today, Semeli is especially associated with indigenous Greek varieties such as Agiorgitiko, Moschofilero, Roditis and Malagousia, and has also become an important destination for wine tourism in Nemea.

Vineyard: From estate owned low yielding vineyards at Koutsi in Nemea, at an altitude of 550-600m.

Soil: Limestone and sloping.

Yield: 50 hl/ha

Microclimate: Chilly winters combined with cool summer nights, due to high altitude, provide perfect maturation. The grapes are vinified to reveal the character of a deep red and well- balanced wine.

Harvest: September 15-17th.

Vinification: Grapes are handpicked and transferred to the winery, where after strict selection, they are first chilled into a cooling chamber and then cold maceration follows for up to five days, at a temperature of 8-10°C before fermentation, in order to maximize flavour and colour extraction. Classic red wine vinification takes place in temperatures of 22-24°C. The wine is matured in French oak casks for 12 months (30% new and the rest of second use) and 12 months in the bottle, before release. Can be aged for further 5 to 8 years.