WINE 

According to Greek mythology, wine was given to humanity as a gift by Dionysus, the god of pleasure, wine making, life and friendship. Dionysus' favourite companion was Ariadne, the daughter of Minos, king of Crete.
In Crete, wine making goes back at least 4000 years and was an occasion for feasting in ancient Crete with offerings to the Gods. In Vathipetro, in the village of Archanes, in a Minoan villa archaeologists discovered the ruins of a wine installation facility along with storage rooms full of clay jars for wine storage. At 3500 years old, this is the island’s oldest unearthed wine-press.
Wine making continued throughout the years and flourished especially during the Roman Empire. During that time, there were at least fifteen pottery workshops in the island, making clay jars meant for wine transportation. Remnants of these jars have been unearthed in various towns on the Mediterranean shores, proof that Cretans exported their wine, especially a sweet wine called “Protropos” which was exported to Italy.

Later, under Venetian occupation, wine was the main export product of the island. Vine cultivation was so popular that authorities took measures to limit it since the majority of the population was planting grapes and there was a real shortage danger for other foodstuffs. The old wine presses were called “galeagra” (used between the 13^th and 15^th century) and in the Alagni area, approximately 30 km south of Heraklion, the stone part of a galeagra was unearthed with its wooden screw saved intact (it was used as a door handle!). In late medieval Europe, in the fourteenth to sixteenth centuries, vino di Candia (Candia is the modern capital city of Heraklion) was very popular with “Malvasia”, a famous wine made from the “Liatiko” grape variety, being very highly rated and exported throughout Europe.
Wine is part of the culture in Crete and the Cretans are well aware of the health benefits of moderate wine consumption; In Crete, good wine accompanies every dinner and is not a solitary practice as it goes hand in hand with social events, good company and friendship.
Cretan wine production, grape varieties, categories and labels

Today, Cretan wine production averages approximately 60.000 tons/year and accounts for 15-20% of all wine produced in Greece. The modern wine industries of Crete have exploited the traditional grape varieties using knowledge accumulated over centuries of wine-making on the island and combining it with modern technology and marketing strategies. Qualified enologists experiment with succulent grape varieties to produce distinguished wines satisfying a wide range of pallets. The Cretan "appellation d'origine controlee" ("designation of origin") wines constitute an invaluable heritage of traditional selections absolutely harmonized with the climatic conditions of the island.
The prefectures of Heraklion, Lasithi and Chania are the major wine producers of the island with areas distinguished for their wine varieties including Archanes, Peza, Dafnes, Arkalohori, Siteia, Monofatsi, Kydonia and Kissamos. These areas are protected from the warm southern winds by the mountains which also provide water during the summer from the melting snow.
In the prefecture of Heraklion, in Archanes and Peza, the two red grape varieties cultivated are Kotsifali (characteristic aroma and taste) and Mandilari (deep ruby colour). These two varieties produce wines with a very distinctive colour and taste. The white grape variety cultivated in the area is the Vilana which produces a dry white wine with a distinctive aroma and fruity taste. In Dafnes and Arkalohori , the main variety of grapes cultivated is the red Liatiko. Generaly, the prefecture of Heraklion produces red (from the varieties Kotsifali, Mandilari, Liatiko, Ladikino, Sirah and Carignane) and rose (from the varieties Athiri, Thrapsathiri, Silvaner, Chauvignon and Vilana) wines.
Heraklion produces four “Appellations of Origin of Superior Quality” (OPAP) categories of the wines: Peza red (produced by mixing must of the varieties Kotsifali and Mandilari and aging it in oak barrels), Peza white (produced from grapes of the Vilana variety), Archanes red (produced by mixing must of the varieties Kotsifali and Mandilari) and Dafnes red dry or sweet (Produced by mixing must of the varieties Kotsifali and Mandilari)
In the prefecture of Lasithi, the grape variety almost exclusively cultivated is the Liatiko which is ideal for mountainous areas and produces high alcohol content wines. Other varieties cultivated are Kotsifali, Ladikino and the Carignane. These are used in the production of the local Lasithi wine which is red or rose.
Lasithi produces one “Appellations of Origin of Superior Quality” (OPAP) category wine, the Sitia red dry or sweet produed from the Liatiko variety.
In the prefecture of Chania, the main grape variety cultivated is the Romeiko producing red, rose and white wines , the main type of which is called Marouvas. The remaining varieties of grapes cultivated in the rest of Crete are also cultivated (in smaller quantities) in Chania.
Generally, the Cretan Appellations of Origin of Superior Quality - O.P.A.P. (read about Greek wine categories and labels further down) according to vine cultivation region, type and grape variety are the following:

Region	Type	Variety
Archanes	Red, Dry	Kotsifali, Mandilaria
Dafnes	Red, Dry Red, Sweet	Liatiko Liatiko
Peza	White, Dry Red, Dry	Villana Kotsifali, Mandilaria
Sitia	Red, Dry Red, Sweet	Liatiko Liatiko

The types and grape varieties of Cretan Vin de pays - Topikos Oenos (read about Greek wine categories and labels further down) are:

Type	Variety
White, Dry	Villana, Athiri, Thrapsathiri, Sylvaner, Sauvignon Blanc, Ugni Blanc
Rose, Dry	Liatiko, Kotsifali, Mandilaria, Romeiko, Ladikino,Syrah, Carignan, Grenache Rouge
Red, Dry	Kotsifali, Mandilaria, Liatiko

Greek wine categories
The European Community built on the French AOC structure and set up a concept of quality wine produced in a delimited region: VQPRD - Vin de Qualite Produit dans une Region Determinee. The Community states that only wines made in a named zone can be so labelled, and oblige member countries to control yield, grape varieties and the precise area within each denomination. Moreover, a second category is that of Table Wines.
The VQPRD wines are the O.P.A.P. (Appellation of Origin of Superior Quality) and the O.P.E. (Controlled Appellation of Origin). The former can be distinguished by a red tape (supplied by the state) placed on the bottle’s mouth and the latter from a blue tape.
The regulations for the Appellations are the following:

• Delineation of the wine production and vine cultivation area
• Grape variety
• Wine production methods
• Cultivation techniques
• The yield from a given area of vines (1/10 of a hectare)
• Wine’s alcohol content

With Table Wines (Epitrapezios Oenos - Vin de Table) winemakers are able to experiment with the vinification and cultivation methods and to adjust to the market’s changing taste because the production regulations are not as strict. Included in the category are the Topikos Oenos (Vin de Pays) and the Onomasia kata Paradosi (Traditional Appellation).
Topikos Oenos wines bear the name of the region, county, or town, from which they come from and the word "Topikos" (local). The regulations for these wines are the following:

• Delineation of the vine cultivation area
• Grape varieties
• The yield from a given area of vines (1/10 of a hectare)
• Wine’s alcohol content

Under the Traditional Appellation category we find the Greek Retsina and the Verdea produced in the Ionian Islands. The limitation of resin added to the wine is 1,000 gms per hectoliter.

Greek wine labels
Wine labels give us information about the wine and are detailed because the buyer needs to know quite a lot about a wine before judging it. The laws and regulations governing the wine industry (quality control, health standards, and authenticity) are translated on the label and protect the consumer.