Aegean Islands named one of the “Ten Best Wine Travel Destinations for 2014”

If you want to experience the best wine in Europe, you travel to the likes of France, Portugal and Italy, right? Not necessarily. According to Wine Enthusiast Magazine, the Aegean Islands in Greece are one of the best places to travel to for quality wine.

Every year the Wine Enthusiast Magazine, one of the world’s number one sources for wine, visits hundreds of wine regions across the globe and narrows the list down to a top ten – lucky them.

Not only did Greece make it onto the top ten wine regions list, but it was mentioned first. In reference to the Aegean Islands, the magazine’s editors, Mike DeSimone and Jeff Jenssen, wrote:

“With whitewashed villages that cling to steep hillsides, which drop precipitously toward the deep blue sea, few people think of the Aegean Islands as a wine destination. But if you look carefully, you will see that the island of Santorini is essentially one large farm, Samos has terraced vineyards on Mount Ambelos, and Crete is home to a variety of white and red grapes. All three islands have excellent choices for lodging and fine dining, and the network of ferries and short-hop flights make visiting one or more of these convenient and simple.”

The Aegean Islands are situated on the Aegean Sea, located between mainland Greece and Turkey. The two most famous and well-visited of the islands are Crete and Rhodes. These sun-drenched islands might be synonymous with beautiful beaches, feta salads, baking temperatures and characterful beach side tavernas but are not generally associated with wine.

While it might not have the wine-grandeur associations the likes of France, California and New Zealand have, we cannot ignore that Greece is one of the oldest wine-producing regions in the world. The earliest reports of wine in Greece date back to 6,500 years ago when wine was produced on a communal or household basis.

So if you are lucky enough to be holidaying on one of the culturally, culinary, and scenically-stunning Aegean Islands, make sure you take note of the row upon row of vineyards that carpet the landscape and perhaps you’ll sample the local wine with a little more optimism.