Velvet Nemea Silky, fragrant and beautifully composed, the 2024 Agiorgitiko from Gaia shows exactly why this grape has become one of modern Greece’s most compelling reds. Ripe berries and black cherry lead the way, joined by plum, a touch of gooseberry and soft caramel notes, with discreet oak adding polish rather than weight. The palate is smooth and velvety, full of supple dark fruit and gentle spice, with soft tannins giving the wine shape and a calm, rounded flow. There is richness here, but it is carried with finesse, making the wine feel polished, balanced and wonderfully drinkable. For when: roast lamb is on the table and the evening settles in slowly.Pairs with: grilled meats, aubergine dishes, tomato-rich stews, or hard cheeses with a little age.If this wine were a place: a hillside in Nemea at dusk, with warm stone underfoot and herbs on the air. Gaia (pronounced Yay-ya) Estate is one of the pioneers of the modern Greek wine revolution, founded in 1994 by Leon Karatsalos and Yiannis Paraskevopoulos with the aim of showing the world just how fine Greece’s indigenous grapes can be. This Agiorgitiko comes from vineyards near Koutsi in Nemea, a semi-mountainous area known for chalky soils, good drainage and lower yields that help produce concentrated, elegant fruit. Gaia’s own current wine page describes the wine as a refined interpretation of Agiorgitiko, capable of gaining further complexity over four to six years of ageing.
