Kir Yianni, Ramnista, Naoussa

I've mentally relegated this to the "science experiment" portion of my cellar but I probably should have been more generous as this is just lovely and has had a lot of positive development for its time in the cellar. The fruit is still a youthful cherry-red but the structure has been sanded down to shift this decidedly towards the pinot noir aspect as opposed to the nebbiolo aspect of the grape's personality. It's smooth, fruit-forward, and easy-drinking with just a …

2007 vintage

Sourced directly from the Kir-Yianni cellars by the excellent Citta dei Nicliani in Mani Peninsula in Greece , this being a recent release and lacked “ Le Debut” albeit we are not sure if this is the first vintage of it. We had this last in 2013 from magnum ( Papies 92) and we are happy to see this evolve along the right path and albeit its feeling like it’s approaching the end still is a testament to how well …

1997 vintage

This must be the loveliest Greek red wine I have ever tasted. Still blooming

1997 vintage

The color was not as tawny as expected. Can not tell that this wine is 13 years old taking into account grape variety color. On the nose dried figs, red fruits , earthy tones , flowers and some barrel scents. As the time was passing fruit was coming up as sweet strawberries. On the palate tannins are there, rounded and balanced. Medium bodied with acidity that supports the fruit. Long aftertaste. In a very good point even though it could …

2007 vintage

Despite the bottle being laid sideways for many years, the cork was dry and broke in two. The wine is fading, on its way downhill. Judging by this bottle, drink yesterday or wait for a resurrection in the future... I am a little bit partial to Ramnista, so I'll give this wine a second chance if I find another bottle...

1997 vintage

Very fragrant, with a freshness that shows it is still at youth. It shows varietal typicity which when young it didn't but it leans more to the tart fruity side (cherry, damson) than the vegetal aspect of the variety. Aromas are complemented by some leather notes as well. Very well balanced on the palate which has a firm but not aggresive structure and a deep flavor. Good finish. Very good Xinomavro which drinks well but is not yet fully mature.

2007 vintage

This was very enjoyable with lots of dark fruit and even structure.

2007 vintage

Drank from a bottle with the French label "Xinomavro 1997 Le Debut". The wine was mature with typical tomato, olive leaf, and spice aromas. With easter lamb it was a perfect match. Strong and flavorful wine. The wine from this bottle showed no signs of fatigue.

1997 vintage

Notes from a magnum. Garnet with a tawny rim. Nice scents of tomato, red fruit, olive and herbal notes. Warm nose. Quite good focus of the fruit, good intensity despite the age. Great structure in the mouth with firm tannins and balancing acidity. Tomato and prunes dominate with oak almost integrated. Some cedar notes and chocolate in the medium to long finish. This is a lovely xin that given the good fruit should keep going for some time. Lovely

1997 vintage

Un concentré de bons tannins et de poly-phénols grecs, comme l’orthographe du titre l’indique. "Ramnista" est un vin de la maison Kir-Yianni. 100% xinomavro, cépage dont le nom pourrait se traduire par "noir acide". Millésime 2007. Géographiquement, c’est Naoussa, l’extrême nord de la Grèce, à une centaine de kilomètres à l’ouest de Thessalonique et à proximité de la frontière avec la Macédoine. Irrigation estivale en "goutte-à-goutte", 14,6% d’alcool, 3 grammes de sucre résiduel, un peu d’acidité volatile…ce n’est pas vraiment …

2007 vintage

Weekly tasting group #085; A mixed set: white, red and sweet. (@ My place) : Organic bouquet. Oxidized. On the palate chocolate, coffee, raisins, figs, nuts and celery. This wine was long past its peak. No score.

1997 vintage

From magnum and requires some decanting. Always a joy to come across well aged xinomavro ( We were told by Filippo Pulisci of Antinori that this is known as negroamaro in Italy and in both cases it translates as black & bitter, Jancis Robinson however told us that there is no Genetic Link) because with age it takes this delicate character almost a Pinot noir. The nose is quite open from start, with a bordeauxesque feel, leather, tobacco notes light …

1997 vintage

I do not know if it is the bottle but the wine showed signs of fatigue. Nose was exuberant - I have rarely seen a red aged so intensely aromatic! - but fruit was turning a little stewed... Dominant aromas were of tomato paste, truffle, spices and prunes. Palate is medium bodied with high acidity, intense flavor and long finish but tannins are hard and do not seem to mellow...ever. Nevertheless this is one of my favorite wines and I …

1997 vintage

Maybe 93 points do unjustice for this wine but I try not to get carried away... Fantastic aged Xinomavro with lots of life ahead of it. The nose is so expressive as very few wines are. Aromas are unique to this super Greek variety with olive, olive leaves, tomato tapenade, prunes and sweet spices. Flavor intensity in the palate is stupendous. Still with firm tannins it is a wine solely for food. Finish is long. This wine is on par …

1997 vintage

Almost hints of blue raspberries and slight black licorice and molasses. This stuff is a SERIOUS fruit bomb on the nose. Flavor has a beautiful acidity and tannins that compliment the blackberry, raspberry and boysenberry notes. You can totally see that this wine is an old world wine and really showcases the "terroir" of Greece.

2007 vintage

This will be a fine wine in maybe five years. You can smell a lot of promissing impressions if you are able to get through painfull hoards of tannins attacking your palate. It is much too young to enjoy now.

2007 vintage

Douglas Lamb Wines Trade Tasting (Art House Hotel, Pitt Street, Sydney) : Slight bitter cherry and white pepper with hints of olive High tannin, burnt cherry, positively chewy texture. Medium acid and alcohol and a spicy hot long finish. Hmm to okay.

2007 vintage

In past vintages, Ramnista has sometimes been a wine I wanted to enjoy but had trouble actually finding much enjoyment in the bottle. Happily that is not the case with the 2007. The grape is xinomavro. If you're unfamiliar with it, imagine something that manages to combine the feminine grace of pinot noir with the gritty, tarry flavors and occasionally also the structural muscle of nebbiolo. Surely something so captivating ought to be more famous, right? I agree. You'll come …

2007 vintage

Assez foncé pour un xinomavro. Un nez qui s'ouvre sur des notes de prunes, de réglisse, de cerises, de violettes et de vanilles. En bouche l'élevage n'est pas encore intégré, mais la structure est là avec beaucoup d'acidité et de tannins typique des xinomavro. À revoir dans quelques années.

2007 vintage

WSPC Vertical Tasting of Kyr Yianni Ramnista, 29 November 2010. This vintage of this wine was what turned me on to the majesty and possibilities of Xin. Every time I taste bottles of this vintage, both the initial memory floods back and I wonder at the new complexities that unfold before me in the glass. Medium ruby, red brick edges. Tomatoes (fresh, sun dried & paste), green & black olives, leather, earth, garrigue herbs, sweet spices (licorice, cinnamon, cloves), ripe …

1997 vintage

Was looking forward to tasting this as the first Xin I fell in love with was a Ramnista (albeit an aged 1997) and although Ramnistas needed quite a few years of bottle age to reveal their beauty, the 2007 had the reputation of being fruit forward and an early drinker. Clear medium purple (darker than normal for a Xin). Clean nose with concentrated black fruits, licorice, cloves, vanilla and vegetal aspects very much in the background. None of the tell …

2007 vintage

WSPC Vertical Tasting of Kyr Yianni Ramnista, 29 November 2010. Deep ruby, ruby edges. Clear. Clean, very slight alcohol heat on the nose (it is 14% after all) followed by dark berries & fruit, prunes, plums, black cherries against a background of tea and herbs. The typical Xin aromas of tomatoes & olives came much later as did licorice & other sweet spices. Very smooth entry, medium body with big tannins and very nice slightly sweet acidity. Very smooth, medium …

2007 vintage

1st November vertical 1997-2007 tasting of Ramnista with producer Stelios Boutaris at WSPC in Athens. Fully developed nose with typical Xinomavro aromas, olive leaf, tomato, mushroom, truffle and some green aromas like peppers. Has sweet spices, tobacco, smoke, some ash, fig and prunes. Tannins are quite well resolved, very complex and beautifull mature wine. I preffered the 1998 to it because of its greater fruit intensity. However these wines are very similar to each other.

1997 vintage

1st November vertical tasting of Ramnista with producer Stelios Boutaris at WSPC in Athens. This is a very unusuall Xinomavro and as Stelios explained they are still experimenting on this great variety whose potential he aknowledges is largely unexplored. This is a very dark coloured (ruby) Xinomavro owing to pigeage and cold pre-fermentation extraction. The wine of course is very young but it is already drinkable, an unusual thing for the harshly tannic at youth Xinomavro. The aromatic profile is …

2007 vintage

Tasted alongside another 9 xinomavros from thr Naoussa region (Macedonia; Northern Greece), this was the most modern, fruit-driven and to many, atypical. It is made in the style that the winery has adopted for Ramnista since the 2005 vintage: Very dark ruby; unusually sweet, dense and fruity nose with dark berries, vanilla, violets and black pepper. Medium-full bodied with firm but juicy tanins, very rich fruit given the character of this variety as was known to date and balancing acidity. …

2007 vintage

Medium garnet, bright and transparent, like a burgundy a little darker hue. Nose expressive with fresh prunes, olives and tomato. Also some sweet spice like nutmeg. I had this wine with beef soup and although I know it to be tannic, with the food it was just perfect! Intense flavours of cherries and prunes in the mouth, medium bodied and long aftertaste. One of my favourite Greek wines. Although 13 years of age very young looking and tasting. Must have …

1997 vintage

On the nose, a bit of talcum powder and sweet fruit; promising. Palate is rounded, tasty, ripe, darkish fruits. Feels modern (it gets 50% new oak, apparently), has some similarities to structured blaufrankisches that I've had. 87-88

2007 vintage

Full bodied and round. Red cherries. High acidity. Firm sticky tannin which is a little dry in the finish. Ok, but not impressive wine.

1997 vintage

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Kir Yianni, Ramnista, Naoussa

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