Gaia 4-6H Rosé

Gai’a is among the most important names in modern Greek wine, a two-estate project split between Santorini’s Assyrtiko and Nemea’s Agiorgitiko, founded in 1994 by two friends: Yiannis Paraskevopoulos, who holds a doctorate in oenology from the University of Bordeaux, and agronomist Leon Karatsalos, both graduates of the Agricultural University of Athens. In Nemea they chose the semi-mountainous village of Koutsi, at around 550 meters on chalky limestone with excellent drainage, precisely because its cool temperatures and steep, well exposed slopes yield a more concentrated Agiorgitiko than the valley floor. The name “4-6H” refers to the four-to-six hours of skin contact that give this rosé its pale color and its restraint; the grape is Agiorgitiko (say “ah-yor-YEE-tee-ko”), Greece’s most planted red variety and the pride of Nemea. It offers red currant and wild strawberry with bright acid and a dry, clean, precise finish.