If You Like This, Try That: A Guide to Greek Wine Through Familiar Grapes

One of the biggest barriers to discovering Greek wine is not knowing where to start.

With more than 300 indigenous grape varieties, Greek wine can seem unfamiliar at first glance. But the easiest way to explore it is to begin with the wines you already enjoy.

Whether you're a Chardonnay drinker, love Nebbiolo or always reach for Pinot Gris, there's a Greek grape variety that offers a similar style while introducing you to entirely new flavours, landscapes and stories.

Here's where to begin.

If you like Chardonnay, try Savatiano

For decades, Savatiano was overshadowed by its association with Retsina. Today, it's one of Greece's most exciting white grapes.

Modern Savatiano combines ripe peach and apricot flavours with a subtle herbal character, while older vines often develop a creamy texture and delicate hazelnut notes with bottle age or oak maturation.

If you enjoy:

• White Burgundy

• Unoaked Chardonnay

• Textured Mediterranean whites

  
  

You'll likely appreciate Savatiano's balance of fruit, freshness and texture.

Our recommendation: Longtail Savatiano by The Knack Project, a biodynamic, minimal-intervention expression showing just how complex this historic grape can be.

If you like Pinot Gris, try Kidonitsa

Kidonitsa remains one of Greece's hidden gems.

Named after the Greek word for quince ("kidoni"), it naturally displays aromas of quince, lemon peel and citrus blossom alongside a textured palate that can range from crisp and mineral to gently smoky depending on the winemaking.

If you enjoy:

• Pinot Gris from Alsace

• Pinot Grigio with more texture

• Chenin Blanc

  
  

Kidonitsa offers freshness with considerably more personality than many international varieties.

Our recommendation: Zacharias Lexis Kidonitsa, a beautifully balanced expression from Nemea combining vibrant fruit with oak fermentation and remarkable elegance.

If you like Nebbiolo, try Xinomavro

Few grape varieties invite comparison with Nebbiolo more naturally than Xinomavro.

Known for its firm tannins, bright acidity and remarkable ageing potential, Xinomavro produces wines full of red cherry, strawberry, dried herbs, dried tomato, black olive and savoury complexity.

Like Nebbiolo, it's a grape that evolves beautifully over time.

If you enjoy:

• Barolo

• Barbaresco

• Structured, age-worthy reds

  
  

Xinomavro deserves a place in your cellar.

Our recommendation: Papadopoulos Basilica, a refined mountain-grown expression from a cru single vineyard in Rapsani that showcases the grape's elegance and complexity through low-intervention winemaking.

If you like Merlot, try Agiorgitiko

Agiorgitiko is one of Greece's most approachable red grapes.

Soft, generous and fruit-driven, it delivers ripe cherries, plums and subtle spice wrapped in silky tannins. Depending on the producer, it can range from easy-drinking everyday wines to serious cellar-worthy bottles.

If you enjoy:

• Merlot

• Right Bank Bordeaux

• Fruity yet elegant reds

  
  

Agiorgitiko is an easy next step.

Our recommendation: Zacharias Lexis Nemea, made from old vines in Greece's most famous red wine region, offering exceptional value alongside classic varietal character.

If you like Syrah, try Mavrodaphne

Most wine lovers know Mavrodaphne through sweet fortified wines.

Increasingly, however, producers are revealing its potential as a dry red.

Modern dry Mavrodaphne offers black cherries, forest fruits, violets, Mediterranean herbs and gentle spice with refined tannins and impressive freshness.

If you enjoy:

• Syrah

• Northern Rhône reds

• Elegant cool-climate reds

Dry Mavrodaphne is well worth discovering.

Our recommendation: Haritatos Madame H, a sophisticated interpretation from Kefalonia that completely redefines expectations of the variety.

If you like Viognier, try Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains

Muscat often suffers from misconceptions.

While many expect sweetness, dry Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains can produce some of Greece's most aromatic yet beautifully balanced white wines.

Expect jasmine, orange blossom, citrus, white peach and a striking saline finish when grown in exceptional terroirs.

If you enjoy:

• Viognier

• Dry Gewürztraminer

• Aromatic Albariño

  
  

Dry Muscat offers perfume without heaviness.

Our recommendation: Acritas Wines 620 Skalia, grown on steep stone terraces in Samos at 500 metres above sea level, producing a remarkably fresh and mineral expression of Muscat.

If you like Champagne, try Traditional Method Greek Sparkling Wine

Champagne may be the world's most famous sparkling wine, but Greece is quietly producing traditional method sparkling wines that deserve far more attention.

Using the same labour-intensive secondary fermentation in bottle, these wines combine vibrant acidity, fine bubbles and impressive complexity with the character of Greece's indigenous grape varieties.

If you enjoy:

• Grower Champagne

• Blanc de Noirs Champagne

• English sparkling wine

• Franciacorta

  
  

Greek traditional method sparkling wines offer an exciting alternative that's still largely undiscovered.

Our recommendation: Milia Riza Blanc de Noir, crafted from 100% Agiorgitiko in Nemea. Greece's only winery dedicated entirely to sparkling wine, Milia Riza produces elegant traditional method wines that spend extended time on their lees, developing notes of brioche, red apple and citrus alongside a fine, persistent mousse. It's a sparkling wine that surprises even seasoned Champagne drinkers.

Greek Wine Doesn't Have to Be Intimidating

The beauty of Greek wine isn't that it's completely different from everything else.

It's that it offers familiar styles expressed through indigenous grape varieties, unique landscapes and centuries of winemaking tradition.

If you already know the wines you enjoy, discovering Greek wine becomes much easier.

Start with the style you love, then let Greece surprise you.

Explore these Greek grape varieties

• Savatiano – for Chardonnay lovers

• Kidonitsa – for Pinot Gris drinkers

• Xinomavro – for Nebbiolo fans

• Agiorgitiko – for Merlot lovers

• Mavrodaphne – for Syrah drinkers

• Muscat Blanc à Petits Grains – for Viognier enthusiasts