In these challenging times, we need to find something exceptional before we take on a new supplier. And we think we’ve found something really special here.

Kostaki Estate is run by Evmorfia, who grew up in Samos, and her German partner, Lorenz. They make a fascinating and knowledgeable pair, both with postgraduate degrees in viticulture and oenology, which they combine with a wealth of practical experience in numerous countries abroad. Evmorfia is also a studying for her Master of Wine Exam.

Samos is an island in the Aegean just 1 mile off the coast of Turkey, across the Mycale Strait. We are not unfamiliar with it, having holidayed there decades ago, but the style of wines produced by Kostaki are certainly new to us. The island is dominated by two mountains, Kerkes (1450 m) and Ampelos (1150 m), with the surrounding sea moderating the climate. Every summer, cool winds blow from the North during the hottest hours of the day, keeping the temperature cool and helping the grapes retain freshness. The island is made up of a variety of soils, including limestone, granite, schist and volcanic.

Kostaki Estate is a brand new project with its first vintage coming in 2023. The original vineyards, however, were planted by Evmorfia’s father, Yannis in 1990 in the Ksilaki area, close to Karlovassi in Western Samos. The vineyards obtained organic certification in 2000. During the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, and with the help of her father, Evmorfia began planting her own vineyards, also in the Ksilaki area.

We have never tasted such racy, bright, and delicate wines from Greece. All are made from bush-trained Muscat à Petits Grains, and yet the bold flavours of this grape variety are kept very much in the background. The wines are organically certified and produced with natural yeasts, hardly any oak, and with lowish alcohol.

The first wines we’ve received from Kostaki are:

Kostaki Alo – light and crisp dry white wine with 11.5% ABV. Hand-harvested grapes from un-irrigated old bush vines. It is a blend of different wine-making techniques.

Kostaki Estate Dry– Kostaki’s flagship wine. Structured with vibrant acidity, it is compact and mineral-driven.

Kostaki Early Harvest– With 15g/l of residual sugar, picked 3-4 weeks before the main harvest, Early Harvest is an energetic off-dry white wine at just 9% ABV.

Kostaki Ancestral Pet Nat– a bone-dry refreshing wine at 10.5% ABV. Direct pressed and spontaneously fermented in stainless steel. After 21 days, the fermenting juice is racked and immediately bottled. The bottled wine is fermented to full dryness, staying on its lees until disgorgement, with the addition of 10mL orange wine as dosage.

For more information on our new friends from Samos, visit their website: https://kostakiwinery.gr/