Malagousia 2020 from Ktima Gerovassiliou

Great wines always come with a story attached. And that's certainly true of Gerovassiliou's Malagousia. The beginnings of this story, though, are decidedly murky. (As a starting point, this post by Yiannis Karakasis is recommended; anyone wanting to go down the rabbit hole should follow the trail laid by the Keith Edwards piece linked at the end…) What's known for certain is that the Malagousia vine was cultivated in the first half of the 20th century in western Greece, along the Gulf of Corinth, around the towns of Nafpaktos and Mesolongi. After the Second World War, though, landscaping and building projects led to these plots being abandoned. The legendary Stavroula Kourakou-Dragona's "Wine and Vine Institute" in Athens at the time presumably received cuttings via an agricultural scientist working there – Charalambos Kotinis. From here, rootstocks presumably made their way to the Porto Carras estate in 1969, where a certain professor from the University of Thessaloniki – the now-deceased Vassilis Logothetis – had planted an experimental vineyard. This hard-to-reconstruct detour tends to be overlooked in the literature – for instance by Jancis Robinson – where it's assumed that Logothetis discovered the variety (in central Greece).

What's beyond dispute is that Evangelos Gerovassiliou, as oenologist at Porto Carras, then discovered the variety's potential and helped bring about its fame today. He first released Malagousia not merely as a blending partner in 1994 (that very first vintage still showed exceptionally well in 2016). By that point, Gerovassiliou had already, in parallel, gathered ten years of experience growing it at his family's estate – today's Ktima Gerovassiliou (in German).

Since then, it's been a meteoric rise. Ten years ago, estimates put the planted area at under 200 ha; today, it's said to be over 500. There's a real risk, though, that Malagousia could end up cast in the role of a Pinot Grigio, an easy-drinking summer wine without much ambition. That would be a real shame, though, because Malagousia has a great deal to offer. It's usually counted among the aromatic varieties. Comparing it to Muscat does it a disservice, though. The closer comparison is probably to Müller-Thurgau. Like that variety, Malagousia proves remarkably versatile depending on how it's grown and vinified. Muscat notes tend to appear above 13.2% alcohol, and then push aside the more typical floral and citrus-leaning notes. It's precisely in the fruity-floral style that Malagousia has huge potential. It's the ideal wine for anyone who genuinely likes aromatic varieties but isn't quite brave enough to admit it. Done right, such a Malagousia has more class and complexity than a Müller-Thurgau can muster. And doing a great deal right is quite evidently what Evangelos Gerovassiliou does. Which brings us to the current 2020 vintage…

When tasting truly great wines, there's really always a certain aha moment that instantly makes it clear you've got something special in the glass. Here, that happened right at the uncorking. Suddenly: raised eyebrows, astonished looks. A wave of peach aroma pours into the room and instantly fills it. Ktima Gerovassiliou takes the harvest timing for Malagousia very seriously, to avoid oxidising the terpenes, which can push aside fruity aromas in the way described. Despite some delays in the 2020 harvest for Greek varieties, the timing was evidently hit perfectly here. We haven't had such clear peach fruit in previous vintages. Alongside it comes a touch of green apple. You could fool Riesling fans with it. The floral notes are only very subtle, most likely gardenia. On top of that comes a hint of mint. On the palate, the wine then shows pleasant grapefruit and a lovely arc of acidity. Just the faintest trace of carbonic still. The 13.5% alcohol (which here doesn't come with the overripeness that's usually accompanied by muscat tones) and the restrained use of oak (25%, old barrels) lend the wine a lovely creaminess besides.

If any Greek white wine (that isn't made from Assyrtiko) has what it takes to become a cult wine right now, it's surely the Malagousia from Ktima Gerovassiliou (in German). Backstory, consistently high quality, recognisability and clear direction all come together here. And the 2020 vintage underlines these ambitions once again: without doubt a phenomenal wine, deserving 18.5 points.

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How we rate: see here.

On partnerships: see here (in German).