We just got back from a Greek and surrounding area cruise where we tasted some wines in Cyprus. Most of the wines we had there were nice but not really memorable. But, I rather enjoyed a Commandaria from Ktima Gerolemo. It is a sweet wine made from grapes hung out to dry - no botrytis and certainly no ice. Richish wine with nice flavors, even though it seemed to come from red grapes, it sort of reminded me in flavors of a Hungarian tokaji but certainly not an Essencia - more at the 3 or maybe 5 Puttonyos levelish.
Interested if anyone has had any experience with Commandaria? Interested in thoughts, aging potential, etc.
I’ve had a few Commandarias over the years, really unique stuff! Haven’t tried the Ktima Gerolemo one yet, but sounds like a nice find. I’ve found they age really well, some can go decades and just get more complex. Definitely an underrated dessert wine.
Thanks for your help. My sense is that the Commandaria I had may not be typical. Wine-searcher calls Commandaria a fortified wine. Commandaria - Cyprus Wine Region | Wine-Searcher But, the wine I had was only 14% alcohol. The winery I was at was Commandaria – Κτήμα Γερόλεμο (although the label does not look like that label).
Always interesting to try something new. Thanks again.
Commandaria can be made by both fortification and halting fermentation.
I usually love Commandarias, although they come in all kinds of styles and levels of quality - not just according to how they are made (fortified/non-fortified) but also whether they are oxidative or aged reductively; if they see any new oak or lots of it; how high is the level of residual sugar; etc. Occasionally these wines can get quite heavy as the varieties the wine is made from rarely have high levels of acidity.
I can’t really agree with the Tokaji comment, as to me, Tokaji has considerable botrytis influence, whereas Commandaria is made with just sun-dried grapes. Sort of the same thing as Vinsanto, only without the balancing acidity and volcanic minerality.
By the way, the wine is made with a blend of red (Mavro) and white (Xynisteri) varieties, not just red. In right hands Xynisteri can be made into a quite nice dry white as well, but Mavro is a variety that struggles to make anything interesting - apart from Commandarias.
There are some super old Mavro vineyards that make good wines.
Hope you enjoyed Cyprus, Howard! Gerolemo is a relatively new winery and takes advantage of the proximity to the port to do a big tourist trade. Good wines and he has made an real effort to work w/ native grapes. I’ve not visited in a while and not had his Commandaria in bottle.
I’ve had a few Commandarias, mostly from producers like Keo or ETKO. Haven’t tried the Ktima Gerolemo one, but the 14% alcohol suggests it might not be fortified. As Otto said, styles can vary a lot, oxidative vs reductive, sweet vs fresher. Aging potential depends on structure, but many do age well. Cool to see more work with native grapes in Cyprus.