Hatzidakis Winery – Mavrotragano 2017

Mavrotragano was considered all but extinct on Santorini, a black and, as Yiannis Karakasis translates the name, crunchy variety that only producers such as the organic pioneer Hatzidakis, founded in 1997, have turned back into a single-varietal red. This one comes from unirrigated vines up to a hundred years old with tiny yields, ages eighteen months in French oak and is bottled unfiltered. The 2017 vintage was a hot year on Santorini; after an outstanding spring, heatwaves arrived at the end of June bringing massive sunburn, and anyone who didn't pick early and select rigorously ended up with broad, alcohol-driven wines. The red varieties handled the heat better than Assyrtiko, and from such old, sparse vines a year like this yields power rather than heat. I rated another Santorini Mavrotragano from 2017, the one from Argyros, at 90+.

At fifteen percent alcohol this is a beast, and you can feel the vintage. On the nose first cherry, then undergrowth, and with a little warmth in the glass mocha joins in. On the palate a gripping tannin that virtually seals the mouth shut without being all over the place or even coarse, beneath it a creamy texture and a note of shoe polish, on the initial finish slightly salty, then bloody. This is powerful and densely built, a Mavrotragano that translates the heat of the vintage into structure rather than jam.

For me this is 93 points, really not to be sniffed at, and the price keeps pace: the 2017 itself is sold out, mature vintages such as the 2014 and 2015 sit in specialist retail at around 130 to 137 euros, while the current vintage runs about 65 to 75 euros.