George Kassianos

Ktima Dafermou blends the old with the new If you are an avid traveller and enjoy a glass of wine, visiting wineries might be the perfect type of day out ...

Housed in a modern winery, Marathasa wines are thriving A couple of years ago, I predicted that there would be a revival of vineyards facing north. Since then, a few ...

Chile is a long country, the longest at 4,500km, but not wide. It has dry and sunny summers, although the cold south Pacific ocean brings freshness to many vineyards. A ...

Fine wines from one of the leading wineries in Greece For some reason, when I taste Greek wines my mind goes back to 80s London with whites and reds from ...

The annual contest attests to the vibrancy of viticulture in Cyprus says GEORGE KASSIANOS There were 170 different samples of wine competing for medals at the 14th Cyprus Wine Competition, with ...

In the recent international contest the Cyprus entrant did better than ever before, raising the bar for the profession on the island The ASI Best Sommelier of the World contest ...

While global wine predictions are difficult there are some growing trends Not many can predict the future, but wine ‘experts’ around the world, or shall we say ‘wine stakeholders’ are ...

The Maratheftiko red variety is an ancient, indigenous grape to Cyprus. Over the last 35 years this variety has been cultivated to produce premium red wines. Noted in Cyprus by Mouillefert (1893) ...

Freelance Sommelier Sotiris Neophytidis has won the 9th Best Sommelier of Cyprus for the year 2022. The contest was held under the auspices of the International Association of Sommeliers, ASI. Sotiris ...

By George Kassianos Next Sunday is Orthodox Easter, the most sacred holiday in the Greek Orthodox faith. Traditional foods and large feasts are an important part of modern Cypriot life. ...

On April 8 at the Carob Mill in Limassol the Peloponnese wines are returning to Cyprus with a score of their celebrated wines and latest vintages. There will be 26 wineries, and ...

The drive, as you turn off from the Nicosia Limassol highway to Ktima Dafermou is not long. As you climb up, the Ktima Dafermo winery suddenly appears on your right. ...

It is hard to believe that only four years ago the name Vasilissa, which in Greek means queen, was an undiscovered grape variety. At the time another variety was grabbing ...

For the holidays it is best to go with crowd pleasing wines rather than focusing on one dish on the table When choosing wines for Christmas should we buy considering ...

December 1 has been set as the day of Maratheftiko grape, which was celebrated for the first time in Cyprus this year with a series of events including one at Rous ...

George Kassianos reflects on sommelier contest that reflected the island and samples some local wines The ASI Contest for the Best Sommelier of Europe and Africa, organised by the Cyprus ...

The year was 2014, in San Remo participating in the Contest for the Best Sommelier of Europe. Iraklis Christophorou, then president of the Cyprus Sommeliers Association, and myself were at one ...

Vouni Panayia Winery 2020 Vouni Panayia, Spourtiko, PGI Pafos, Abv 12% There is something about Spourtiko I cannot explain. The wine from fragile skinned grapes whose main task is to provide the ...

Pitsilia is a wine region where vines and pines grow together on the mountainside. Already three of the most well-known wineries source their fruit from around the mountain peaks of ...

When you meet Lefteris Mohaniakis he may remind you of an enfant terrible like Didier Dagueneau was in Pouilly Fumé years ago. However, although he is a bit radical, like ...

By George Kassianos Nestled in the pastoral hills of Pareklisia, just 20 minutes north of Limassol, the Hadjiantonas winery is a hidden gem. The Hadjiantonas winery team has been making wine ...

Winemaking is a fascinating and complex transformation process of a raw plant material. It starts with the arrival of the harvest at the cellar and ends with active and decisive ...

Theodoros Makarounas entered the winemaking scene in 2017 with two labels, his white and rosé. The red followed in 2018. Still young and independent, he wanted to make wine the way he ...

The 2020 vintage was painful, and will never be forgotten. Not so much for the quality of the vintage but because it was the year Covid affected our lives. Halfway through ...