The Grapes

Shiraz Maratheftiko (Rosé)

Shiraz  or Syrah is a variety of grape, used mainly to blend with other varieties when very ripe. Shiraz excels in the climates of California, Australia, Cyprus and is extensively grown in France's Rhone Valley.

Origin: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Syrah

Maratheftiko is an ancient grape variety indigenous to Cyprus. It is also known locally as Vambakadha (Βαμβακάδα), Vambakina (Βαμβακίνα), Pampakia (Παμπακιά), Mavrospourtiko (Μαυροσπούρτικο), Aloupostaphylo (Αλουποστάφυλο). It is grown in sparse quantities around the island but mostly in the Pitsilia region. In the 1980s, with the revival of small boutique wineries in Cyprus this variety was rediscovered and its cultivation is slowly on the increase again, as it offers a distinctive character to local wines.

Origin: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maratheftiko

Mataro (Red)

Mataro (Australia, California, Cyprus) or Mourvedre (France) or Monastrell (Spain) is a black-skinned variety that has been grown in vineyards all around the western Mediterranean for centuries. Thought to have originated in Spain, it is now grown extensively throughout the Iberian Peninsula, southern France, Cyprus, California and South Australia. Mourvedre likes warm, dry climates and has small, thick-skinned berries – the textbook combination for making wines with intense color and high tannin levels.

Growing Mataro is not recommended for vignerons without a great deal of patience. The vines take several years before they begin to produce fruit of any quality – sometimes five years can pass before a Mataro vine yields its first harvest.

Origin: http://www.wine-searcher.com/grape-298-mourvedre-monastrell

Chardonnay (White)

Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern France but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from England to New Zealand. For new and developing wine regions, growing Chardonnay is seen as a "rite of passage" and an easy entry into the international wine market.

Origin: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chardonnay

Certificates

The organic wines of Tsangarides Winery are LACON certificated.