Greece, Zakynthos: Art & Wine Winery
Art & Wine Winery of the Giatras-Goumas family
While spending your holidays on the beautiful isle of Zakynthos in Greece you might stumble upon a number of smaller vineyards. There are also some larger ones though, with intriguing names like Grampsas, Oenolpi and Callinico.
Zakynthos winery visit
Although the crystal blue waters of the Mediterranean Sea certainly will look quite tempting in the hot temperatures of Greece, visiting at least one winery is a must. We already had the pleasure to drink one of the local wines from the Art & Wine Winery over diner, so the choice of which winery to visit was quickly made.
Art & Wine Winery: Goumas Estate
A rental car is an absolute necessity in case you like to visit some wineries. From Zakynthos Town it’s a 20 minute drive to the countryside of the northwestern part of the island until the mountain Vrachionas comes in sight. Just a few kilometers from a small and picturesque settlement named Maries you will find the winery of the Giatras-Goumas family.
Giannis, his wife Despoina and daughter Eviana produce quality wines here on their fully renovated family property. Giannis is a passionate icon painter and lived in Athens for quite a few years. Because the winery property has been family owned for over a 100 years it was inevitable that Giannis returned to Zakynthos in an effort to combine his craft of icon painting with the craft of winemaking. Hence the name Art & Wine Winery.
Local Zakynthos grape varieties
Some of the grape varieties that have been cultivated for centuries on the isle of Zakynthos include Skiadopoulo, Katsakoulias, Goustolidi and Pavlos. Not the average grape varieties most people are familiar with, but that makes a tasting even more exciting! A rare Greek variety named Avgoustiatis and another more common one named Robola are cultivated at Goumas Estate. The white Robola wines are quite elegant and an excellent choice to match with local seafood dishes.
Avgoustiatis is believed to come from the Ionian Islands but is also found on the western parts of the Peloponnese peninsula and makes up for deeply coloured red wines with soft tannins and a good acidity. Graigos and Sirokos are the names of the two reds that are produced by Giatras-Goumas family and we can highly recommend both of them.
If you want to know some more about local Zakynthos wine production or the art of icon painting this estate is really worth a visit. Despoina and Giannis will certainly give you a warm welcome.
Accomodation in Zakynthos
In case you need some inspiration of where to stay on the island, we can definitely recommend Paliokaliva Apartments and Villas in Tsilivi. Eighteen traditional stone buildings, situated with in acres of characteristic mature olive trees and a swimming pool with a great view. A small kitchen that serves excellent food and very friendly staff. Quite a few evenings were spent on our lovely terrace with a good glass of local wine. We handled it quite well…
Author: Johan de Ligt
Updated: 11-08-2024
