Wine Greek lingo

Every wine producing region in the world has its own lingo. The French have terms for wine that the Hungarians don’t, the Americans have terms for wine that the Australians don’t and the Italians have terms for wine that the Germans don’t. Greece, also has its share of wine lingo. So, here’s some commonly used Greek wine terms.

Archondiko > Archondiko translates roughly to mean Chateau, which is a house located in a vineyard. In Greece, the word Archondiko can be found on bottles of Topikos Oenos Wines, country wines usually made with several different kinds of grape.

Epitrapezios Oenos > The Epitrapezios Oenos is one of the Greek’s more simple wines, like a wine getting by on only the necessities of life, grapes, aging, oak barrels, and basic cable. These wines are essentially the table wines of the Greeks.

Krater > In ancient days, a Krater was a pottery bowl made of bronze that held wine. 

Ktima > A word that is translated to mean Estate, this term, like Archondiko, sometimes appears on the labels of Topikos Oenos Wines.

Kylix > Like a Krater, the Kylix was also used in ancient Greece. It was a shallow cup with two handles decorated extensively. A Kythos, or ladle, was used to scoop up the wine to put in the Kylix. 

Monastiri > A word meaning Monastery, this word sometimes appears on the labels of Topikos Oenos. This is based on the fact that there are several Greek monasteries producing wine. 

Oenos > Wine.

Stefani > Stefani is a form of grapevine training. The grapevines are trained in a way that forces the grapes to grow in the center, giving them natural protection from the wind. In Greek, Stefani is translated to mean crown. Going to Greece is a unique experience, sampling the wine will only compound this. A glass of Archanes, a red wine, or a glass of Visanto, a sweet white wine, is sure to be a great time.

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