Σάμος (Samos)
Styles
Principal grape varieties
Terroir
Natural factors
- Vineyards on terraced slopes with dry-stone retaining walls, ranging from sea level to 900 m elevation.
- Schistose, gravelly soil composition of moderate fertility with good drainage.
- Acidic soils (calcium-deficient) and rich in mineral elements Fe, Mg, Mn, Cu, and Zn.
- Mean annual temperature 20.3 °C; annual rainfall 750 mm, falling from late September to mid-May.
Human factors
- Viticulture on Samos predates the 1st millennium BC; Hesychius describes the Samian grape as uniquely sweet and aromatic.
- The EOSS cooperative (1934) oversees production and exports; in 1955 France recognised Samos as the first Greek wine admitted outside the import quota system.
Product characteristics
- The Samian grape is described as 'very sweet and aromatic,' qualities said to be found nowhere else on the island or in neighbouring Asia.
- The sweet wine of Samos is the official wine of the Eucharist of the Roman Catholic Church.
Facts drawn from the cahier's terroir-link section (Lien au terroir) by automatic interpretation — see the source.
Sources
- National product specification (PDF) — ypaat
- eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-GR-A1564
- Official trade body site — United Winemaking Cooperative of Samos (EOSS)