Santorini may have put it on the fine wine map, but Assyrtiko’s diaspora continues to thrive. Few grapes seem so reliably incapable of being boring. Here are ten that had us reaching for another glass or three.
Kitima Biblia Chora
2023 White (Assyrtiko/Sauvignon)
Kavala, Macedonia
Who would have thought these two would make such fine bedfellows? Vangelis Gerovassiliou, for one. Grippy, zesty, herbal and alive. Delicious.
Mikra Thira
2022 Terassa Assyrtiko
Santorini (Therassia)
A pioneering young winery on the tiny island of Therassia, already turning out world-beating whites with the authority of an old hand. Tiny yields, deep texture, a wine with weight and nerve. Ioanna Vamvakouri has the gift, and she knows how to use it.
Douloufakis
2023 Alargo Assyrtiko
Dafnes, Crete
Nikos Douloufakis is best known for his whites from native Cretan grapes, but this outsider proves he is no tribalist. High-altitude fruit, silk on the tongue, candied citrus at the edges, a rich Chardonnay-like swell underneath.
Gai’a
2024 Thalassitis Assyrtiko
Santorini
Does this wine even need a note? An intense, stony, briny Santorini classic, drawn from low-yielding, 80-year-old vines in Episkopi, Akrotiri and Pyrgos. Santorini with the gloves off. The 2025 is landing soon.
Papagiannakos
2024 Assyrtiko
Mesogaia, Attica
Vassilis Papagiannakos makes some of the most exciting whites in Athens’ back yard. Don’t miss the Old Vines Savatiano, but this Assyrtiko deserves its own applause: energetic, succulent and dangerously moreish, with lemon butter and pine nut richness you do not often find in Santorini’s wines. Great value, too.
Gai’a
2025 Wild Ferment Assyrtiko
Santorini
And this is pretty special, too. From vines around Pyrgos, where Assyrtiko often shows a more aromatic face: jasmine, flint and lemon zest, all pulled tight by that spicy-saline volcanic thread. Perfume up front, steel underneath.
Argyros
2022 Cuvée Monsignori Assyrtiko
Santorini
Damn. Drawn from some of the estate’s oldest ungrafted vines in Episkopi Gonias, many now more than 200 years old, with yields collapsing to a vanishing 15hl/ha. This is Grand Cru Assyrtiko in all but name: immense power, electric energy and a tension that keeps the whole thing clenched like a fist.
Duo Ipsi
2025 Dialogos Assyrtiko/Kydonitsa
Ilia, Peloponnese
Another winning blend from the Vangelis Gerovassiliou–Vassilis Tsaktsarlis stable. Vivacious and textural, it marries the elegance of Kydonitsa to the harder edge of Assyrtiko. One brings the charm, the other the blade.
Ktima Gerovassiliou
2025 White (Assyrtiko/Malagousia)
Epanomi, Thessaloniki
One of Greece’s go-to whites has rarely looked better. Vangelis Gerovassiliou is the godfather of Malagousia, and here he couples it with Assyrtiko to make a wine of lip-smacking texture, aromatic lift and tremendous freshness.
Zafeirakis
2024 Assyrtiko
Tyrnavos, Thessaly
From Christos Zafeirakis’ progressive biodynamic vineyards in the foothills of Mount Olympus. Elegant, precise and alive, with Meyer lemon, wild thyme and wildflowers running through a saline, vibrant core. Fresh as mountain air and hard to resist.
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Kitima Biblia Chora
2023 White (Assyrtiko/Sauvignon)
Kavala, Macedonia
Who would have thought these two would make such fine bedfellows? Vangelis Gerovassiliou, for one. Grippy, zesty, herbal and alive. Delicious.
Mikra Thira
2022 Terassa Assyrtiko
Santorini (Therassia)
A pioneering young winery on the tiny island of Therassia, already turning out world-beating whites with the authority of an old hand. Tiny yields, deep texture, a wine with weight and nerve. Ioanna Vamvakouri has the gift, and she knows how to use it.
Douloufakis
2023 Alargo Assyrtiko
Dafnes, Crete
Nikos Douloufakis is best known for his whites from native Cretan grapes, but this outsider proves he is no tribalist. High-altitude fruit, silk on the tongue, candied citrus at the edges, a rich Chardonnay-like swell underneath.
Gai’a
2024 Thalassitis Assyrtiko
Santorini
Does this wine even need a note? An intense, stony, briny Santorini classic, drawn from low-yielding, 80-year-old vines in Episkopi, Akrotiri and Pyrgos. Santorini with the gloves off. The 2025 is landing soon.
Papagiannakos
2024 Assyrtiko
Mesogaia, Attica
Vassilis Papagiannakos makes some of the most exciting whites in Athens’ back yard. Don’t miss the Old Vines Savatiano, but this Assyrtiko deserves its own applause: energetic, succulent and dangerously moreish, with lemon butter and pine nut richness you do not often find in Santorini’s wines. Great value, too.
Gai’a
2025 Wild Ferment Assyrtiko
Santorini
And this is pretty special, too. From vines around Pyrgos, where Assyrtiko often shows a more aromatic face: jasmine, flint and lemon zest, all pulled tight by that spicy-saline volcanic thread. Perfume up front, steel underneath.
Argyros
2022 Cuvée Monsignori Assyrtiko
Santorini
Damn. Drawn from some of the estate’s oldest ungrafted vines in Episkopi Gonias, many now more than 200 years old, with yields collapsing to a vanishing 15hl/ha. This is Grand Cru Assyrtiko in all but name: immense power, electric energy and a tension that keeps the whole thing clenched like a fist.
Duo Ipsi
2025 Dialogos Assyrtiko/Kydonitsa
Ilia, Peloponnese
Another winning blend from the Vangelis Gerovassiliou–Vassilis Tsaktsarlis stable. Vivacious and textural, it marries the elegance of Kydonitsa to the harder edge of Assyrtiko. One brings the charm, the other the blade.
Ktima Gerovassiliou
2025 White (Assyrtiko/Malagousia)
Epanomi, Thessaloniki
One of Greece’s go-to whites has rarely looked better. Vangelis Gerovassiliou is the godfather of Malagousia, and here he couples it with Assyrtiko to make a wine of lip-smacking texture, aromatic lift and tremendous freshness.
Zafeirakis
2024 Assyrtiko
Tyrnavos, Thessaly
From Christos Zafeirakis’ progressive biodynamic vineyards in the foothills of Mount Olympus. Elegant, precise and alive, with Meyer lemon, wild thyme and wildflowers running through a saline, vibrant core. Fresh as mountain air and hard to to resist.
Rather than trying to extract more from naturally powerful fruit, Davies has embraced the philosophy of new-wave Otago sensitivity and restraint. Less, in other words, is more. The estate’s 26-year-old vines, together with the concentration that has accompanied organic farming, have reduced the need for forceful extraction. Natural ferments are guided by gentle cap wetting,