Amphora wines. An overview
History provides us with more than one testimony of how amphorae, basically large earthenware vessels, were used since ancient times to preserve fermented food and drinks. This technique first appeared in Greece, then in Eastern Europe and later, thanks to the Etruscans, in Italy as well. However, we have Georgia to thank for preserving amphora wine-making methods and techniques and keeping the tradition alive. Georgian amphora wines (or qvevri) have been included by UNESCO in the list of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.
As we have said, amphorae are large earthenware containers: and the point lies in the material, which, being natural and porous, guarantees temperature control (especially when amphorae were buried); better oxygenation; less olfactory characterisation; less use of sulphur dioxide during long macerations; environmental sustainability (unlike wooden barrels, amphorae are potentially eternal containers); the absence of microbiological contamination by Brettanomyces, and consequently less invasive processes of sanitising the containers.
For all these reasons and more, today amphora wines are among the most coveted by the international wine jet-set.

Winemaking at Ktima Marco
The entire vinification process takes place in the premises of Ktima Marco winery, an old henhouse converted into a small, state-of-the-art wine cellar, completely insulated and equipped with a cooling system and environmental temperature control.

First come the vineyards. When harvest time arrives, the grape stalks are hulled by hand, grape by grape. The grapes with their skins then go into amphorae for the fermentation process. Fermentation begins with the inoculation of yeasts (the cellar is new and the environment is not yet saturated with old yeasts) and continues at a controlled temperature. Once fermentation is complete, which lasts on average 20 days, the amphorae are closed for 4-5 months for the period of maceration on the skins: this is a fundamental moment both for the aromatic profile of the wines and for their refinement. At the end of this period, the skins are removed and the wine is decanted into new amphorae for ageing. During ageing, the wines are micro-oxygenated naturally, thanks to the typical porosity of terracotta. It is not necessary to bury the vessels as in the past, as modern materials and encapsulation systems make them quite capable of supporting an ageing process without too much prevention.

It is a fascinating, non-mechanised system, entrusted for better or worse to human talent. But there is more: it is one of the best way of amplifying the aromas of the terroir and doing justice to the real goodness of the grape. In other words, it allows us to immediately understand whether the wine produced from a certain variety, in a certain place, has potential. And we are happy to say that the first experiments confirm our intuition: Alonnisos is definitely suited for wine.

Considering the delicacy of the entire amphora process, as well as the need to produce a proper wine at this stage of the social project, the winery team developed some customised tools to control the oxidation processes: specifically, a steel shim and a lid with two holes that can be opened via valves and with a sort of perforated cylinder in the centre that allows the wine to be extracted via a suction pump that prevents any oxidation. In addition to the oenologist and the farmer, the blacksmith and the plumber are two key figures in the operation of a wine cellar.

Against a number of pros, there is a difficulty: the yield of wines in amphora is 35% compared to 70% in traditional wine making. The risks associated with organic farming and the low yield make our wines – well, a bit expensive. But let us remember that these are sophisticated, limited and absolutely natural wines, produced in accordance with tradition by a cooperating community.