Μeet Passionate Wine Writer, Eleni Kefalopoulou + Add Her Athens Wine Bar to Your List.
Eleni says wine is doubly pleasurable when shared. She’s made a career of doing just that.
There’s Nothing Like Wine with Eleni
Ask anyone in the Greek wine industry and they know her by name. Many consider her a friend.
A champion of small wineries, lesser-known local flavors, and indigenous grape varieties, Eleni Kefalopoulou lives up to her name.
Greek for torch, or bright one, Eleni sheds light on pioneering winemakers who might otherwise fade in the shadow of commercial producers and conglomerates.
When I first landed in Athens, eager to test my fledgling Greek skills (Συγγνώμη παιδιά! Sorry guys), taste Greek wines, and meet women in the wine business, more people than I can count pointed me in her direction.
Storytelling Comes Naturally to Eleni
The twists and turns of her own life story include an education in civil engineering, music and drama, and a lengthy career as a television, film, and voice actress.
It’s no wonder she found her way to wine, a world as magical and transportive as it is delicious, and populated with characters.
She has worked as a journalist (and still does) for premium the wine magazine Oinoxoos, and publications like Athens Insider and national newspaper, Kathimerini.
A true connoisseur, Eleni is relentlessly curious and eager to share everything she has learned. Her enthusiasm is contagious. She speaks with a combination of reverence and affection about the men and women who grow and produce the wine she serves.
Wine with Eleni: The Bar
The wine bar is an extension of Eleni’s wine education and consulting business, which she runs year-round.
As a mainly outdoor venue, she operates the bar seasonally. Read: if it’s nice enough to sit outside, the doors are open. She usually usually closes sometime in November and reopens in spring.
Eleni shuffles up the wine list every four or five days so that the venue functions not only as a gathering spot for wine lovers, but also a place to learn something new.
From day one, she vowed to create the purest form of a wine bar: only wine and water, no beer, and no additional refreshments. So far, she has stayed true to her word, with the exception of some occasional taralli crackers to cleanse the palate.
The bar itself is barely 10 square meters is size. Marked by a single wine barrel, it’s tucked a few steps below sidewalk level on a quiet corner in the Koukaki district, not far from the Acropolis Museum.
Tables spill out into a triangular, tree-lined plaza, filled with faithful locals and curious and discerning wine drinkers. Eleni can be found nightly. She circulates and works the “room” al fresco. The embodiment of hospitality, Eleni will happily sit down and chat every time she fills your glass.
The Monasteries of Mount Anthos: Guardians of the Vine
Her latest passion project is a book lovingly dedicated the monks of Mount Anthos, who havesafeguarded winemaking for more 1000 years on what is known as the ‘holy mountain’ of the Chalkidiki Peninsula.
They’ve preserved techniques and truly indigenous wine varieties that trace their roots to antiquity.
As tradition dictates, women are not allowed to enter the region, as the monks are strictly cloistered. To find out how Eleni pulled that off, you’ll have to buy the book.
Better, sit down for a glass of wine with her next time you visit Athens.
Wine With Eleni
Misaraliotou 20, Athina 117 42, Greece
TEL +306934125839
@winewitheleni
http://www.winewitheleni.com/
Harvest with Eleni
The first time we met, Eleni taught me the Greek word for wine harvest trygos (Τρύγος).
Amid the throes of a holiday-issue magazine deadline, she was kind enough to lend her voice to my series on harvest season for the launch of Tastefully. As someone who is also familiar with deadlines, I am forever grateful.
Read on for a taste of Greek harvest through Eleni’s eyes.
What does harvest mean to you?
Harvest is the circle of life, the cycle of nature as it includes death an rebirth. In Greece, the grape harvest has always been of such great importance that a word exists exclusively for it.
Trygos (τρύγος) refers only to the picking grapes destined for winemaking, and now other crops or produce.
Tell me about your experiences with the harvest.
I’ve participated in several harvests in Greece, especially at small wineries. There’s pleasure in everything, from the the picking of the grapes to everything everything that happens next in the winery.
However, as we say in Greece, trygos (harvest) is like a war.
Everyone must work together and stay on high alert as plenty can go wrong at any moment. I felt the same joy and agony a few years ago while harvesting in Champagne with some more small wine producers, not the huge maisons.
The lunches we enjoyed after harvesting in these wineries, who opened up old vintages of Champagne were really extraordinary.
Are there any Greek traditions for harvest?
There are so many traditions for harvest!
It has been always a social gathering. Just a few decades ago, even the schools would close so that children could participate. The village priest would come to the vineyards to recite a prayer before the harvest. In return, the first basket of grapes collected was dedicated to the local church as a blessing.
Every day following the grape harvest, winery owners prepare lunch for the workers. The final day is always a party with a lot of singing, dancing and drinking, of course. It’s not only for the workers, but it’s also a chance for the local residents to celebrate and bestow their best wishes on the wineries.
And of course, you eat…
The food during these festivals depends on the area where the harvest takes place. It’s always local specialties. Definitely plenty of pies stuffed with different fillings and roasted or oven-baked goat or lamb. Crete is especially famous for harvest celebrations that last for days!
From what you’ve heard, how was harvest this year?
Unfortunately, the 2024 harvest had a lot of problems. It was a very challenging year for the growers. They had to work extremely hard to protect the vines. Droughts and high temperatures destroyed large portions of many vineyards.
Harvest began two to three weeks earlier than usual, the earliest it’s ever happened. Most wineries had 20-30% fewer grapes, and there are places that lost up to 50%.
How Do You Feel About the 2024 Vintage?
Thankfully, hot and dry conditions prevented disease, so the grapes were very healthy and concentrated (ripe and juicy). So I think we ‘ll see less quantity, but wines of great quality. Higher altitude vineyards will produce some of the best ones I believe. Unfortunately, prices with climb too.
As for Greek wines, what should we pay attention to now (2023 vintage and prior)?
2023 was a challenging year as well, but Greek producers managed to have good, balanced whites with nice acidity as well as fine reds. Look for Xinomavro and Limniona red wines, but give them 2-3 years.
And 2024?
Pay attention to Santorini. Assyrtiko with its arid climate and volcanic terroir, yielded only half of the usual quantity. The price of the grapes was extremely high, so we expect very expensive wines. But Santorini Assyrtiko is always a shining star.
What are some Greek wines that feel very autumnal to you?
Autumn is the best season in Greece!
I would recommend a fine Vidiano (a white wine variety) from Crete, for example, Klima from Karavitakis Winery or a light-bodied red, like Aspela from Bosinakis Winery. They’ve produced the first red wine ever made from Moschofilero grapes, which are traditionally vinified as dry, aromatic white wines.