Ktima Biblia Chora

Ktima Biblia Chora is the joint project of Vassilis Tsaktsarlis and Vangelis Gerovassiliou, two of the most influential winemakers in modern Greece, who planted the estate in 1998 on the slopes of Mount Pangeon near Kavala in Macedonia.

The name means land of the sacred vine, and the hill has a long history: Pangeon's gold mines financed Philip of Macedon, and the surrounding country has grown vines since antiquity. The vineyards sit at around 350 metres on granite and limestone, facing north-east, which is unusual in a hot country and deliberate. That exposure and altitude keep the ripening slow and the acidity intact, which is why the whites here have the tension they do.

The estate has been farmed organically since planting. Assyrtiko is the signature, sometimes alone and sometimes with Sauvignon Blanc or Semillon, and the reds run from Agiorgitiko to Cabernet Sauvignon and an unexpected Pinot Noir. Ovilos and Areti are the wines that made the reputation.