A Quick Stroll Through the Peloponnese Wine Festival in Athens – Unconventional picks
by Yiannis Karakasis MW
Last week, I attended the Peloponnese Wine Festival in Athens, a vibrant presentation of wines from one of Greece’s most emblematic wine regions. The event, held at Aegli Zappeiou, brought together a record number of producers and offered a broad, representative snapshot of the Peloponnese today.
Time was limited, and I could not visit every stand. With 55 wineries present, each showing multiple labels and styles, the scale alone makes it clear that one visit is not enough. A return trip is already planned, with the intention of tasting more systematically and in greater depth. Yet, even a short walk through the festival floor was enough to highlight both the region's maturity and progress.
First impressions
The Peloponnese Wine Festival has now firmly established itself as one of the reference events of the Greek wine calendar. It attracts a mixed but focused audience of professionals and engaged consumers, all looking to understand what is currently happening in the region.
The Peloponnese remains strongly linked to its historic vineyards and its core varieties Agiorgitiko, Moschofilero, Roditis, Mavrodaphne and Kydonitsa. At the same time, it continues to play an important role in the Greek story of Cabernet Sauvignon, with serious examples coming mainly from Messinia and Ileia. The overall picture is one of diversity rather than a single narrative.
Among the many wines I did not have time to taste, a small group of rather unconventional bottlings stood out and stayed with me.
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