Assyrtiko or Asyrtiko is a white Greek wine grape indigenous to the island of Santorini. Assyrtiko is widely planted in the arid volcanic-ash-rich soil of Santorini and other Aegean islands, such as Paros. It is also found on other scattered regions of Greece such as Chalkidiki. Assyrtiko is also being grown by the Paicines Ranch Vineyard in the San Benito AVA of California with Margins Wine making the wine, by Jim Barry Wines in Clare Valley, South Australia, at the Abbey of New Clairvaux in Northern California since 2011, and at Kefi Winery in Monroe, North Carolina by a first generation Greek family. The original Assyrtiko cuttings were imported in the USA in 1948 by Harold Olmo, grape breeder at the University of California, Davis, where they were stored until the abbey of New Clairvaux took interest in the early 2000s.
On Santorini, many Assyrtiko vineyards are old and ungrafted (own-rooted), as the island is widely described as phylloxera-free. Vines are traditionally trained low to the ground in basket-shaped kouloura to help protect grapes from strong winds and sun exposure.
Viticulture and terroir
Santorini’s vineyards are often described as arid and windswept, with vines grown close to the ground in basket-shaped kouloura; roots can extend deep into ash-rich volcanic soils in search of moisture during long, dry summers. Throughout Greece, the grape is vinified to make a variety of dry and sweet wines, including Vinsanto-like musky and syrup-sweet dessert wines. In Retsina, it is often blended with the less-acidic Savatiano grape.
Synonyms
Assyrtiko is also known under the synonyms Arcytico, Assirtico, Assyrtico, Asurtico, and Asyrtiko.