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Great Mother Amber

Great Mother Amber - Stilianou Organic Winery - Kounavoi, Heraklion, Crete - Vidiano - Orange Natural wine - Eklektikon

The most promising indigenous Cretan variety, Vidiano, in a skin-contact and natural vinification, named after Great Mother, the mother goddess of the ancient Minoans.

  • Grower: Stilianou
  • Vintage: 2024
  • Type: White Dry Wine
  • Grapes: Vidiano 100%
  • Appellation: PGI Crete
  • Alcohol: 13.00%
  • Bottle: 750ml
  • Viticulture: Dry, Certified organic
  • Vinification: Direct press, 15-day fermentation with indigenous yeasts in stainless steel tank, and bottling without filtration, fining, but a few sulfites at bottling.
  • Tasting Notes: Bright aromatic lift into orange blossoms, ripe white-flesh peach, and a burst of fresh grapefruit zest. Lively and textural on the palate, with a soft, rounded mouthfeel and a clean, citrus-driven energy. The finish is more about feel than flavor – lightly grippy, refreshing, and subtly mineral. Quietly expressive, with a natural elegance rooted in its mountainous Cretan origin.
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Key Info

Viticulture

  • Dry, Certified Organic
  • Climate: Mediterranean
  • Soil: Limestone
  • Vine age: Planted in 2002
  • Altitude: 400m
  • Slope: 3%
  • Planting density: 3,400 plants / ha
  • Yield: 3 kg / plant
  • Irrigation: None
  • Spraying: None
  • Harvesting: Manually in plastic baskets

Vinification

  • Maceration: None (direct press)
  • Pressing: Soft press
  • Temperature Control: None
  • Fermentation: 15 days in stainless steel tank with indigenous yeast
  • Malolactic: None
  • Maturation: 5 months in stainless steel tank
  • Clarification: None
  • Filtration: None
  • Production: 900 lt
  • Alcohol: 13.00%
  • Acidity: 6.00 gr/l
  • RS: 1.0 gr/l
  • Total sulfites: 40.0 mg/l
  • Certification: Organic grapes
  • Bottle: 750ml

Winery

Giannis Stilianou and his teenage son, personally tend to their 3 hectares of organic vineyards, planted only with indigenous Cretan varieties. There is no irrigation or any kind of spraying. The vines are stressed under the hot, Cretan Sun, and then cooled off by the mountain breeze. This shows in the impressive concentration and intense aromatics of the artisanal Stilianou wines.

Region

Crete is the biggest island of Greece, and home to one of the most impressive ancient civilizations, the Minoan.

Heraklion, the fourth largest Greek city and largest city of Crete, is located in the center of the island. It is very picturesque and full of ancient ruins in and around it, spanning thousands of years and many different civilizations, including the Minoan, Byzantine, Venetian, and Arab.

South of Heraklion lies Knossos, the most famous ancient city of Minoan times, with the well preserved and famous homonymous palace, with its bright red pillars and wall art of the time.