Greece in a Glass

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The land of stuffed grape leaves does wines just as well but they’ve often run aground in their travels to the US. Thankfully, area restaurants, like Somerville’s Daddy Jones, are on to the trend of these terroir-driven wines and you can get to know the flavors of Santorini, Crete and more without stepping away from the bar stool. The Daddy Jones wine list matches the restaurant’s Mediterranean sensibilities, but, at first glance, it might all be Greek to you. Owner Dimitra Tsourianis can help you navigate the foreign grapes with some varietals to know when it comes to Greek pours.

moscofileroAt the Magoun Square spot, Tsourianis highlights the grapes of Greece with a Greek-leaning bottle list and simple, European by-the-glass offerings. Greek wines are similar in dryness to Italian varietals and pick up minerality from their unique locale, like the grapes grown on the volcanic soil of Santorini. Tsourianis suggests the Athiri grape, a white wine grape with fresh fruit flavors, that “really tastes like the island,” or a white Assyrtiko for a pour of the ancient island. She leans towards lighter colors when she reaches for a glass and recommends the Moscofilero from Skouras, found at Daddy Jones: “Moscofilero is a really floral grape and then has this nice, dry finish. This one in particular has a lot of honeysuckle.” For red wine-lovers, she suggests a Xinomavro (“bitter black,” in Greek) whose big, juicy flavors get high marks from Zinfandel and Pinot Noir fans.

Though Greek grapes are getting more play in the US market, most oenophiles associate the country with retsina, a resinated white wine. (Wine vessels were historically sealed with pine resin, resulting in a libation imbued with the strong flavor.) Retsina’s unique palate can be divisive and Tsourianis likens it to the juniper flavors in gin that can be off-putting for some drinkers but embraced by others. You’ll find a couple of the pine-y wines on the Daddy Jones list—”I picked them really because it’s the kind of thing that my grandfather used to drink”—and they’re a natural match for the flavorful foods on the menu, like the garlicky tzatziki, for the full Mediterranean experience.

Armed with the above names-to-know, head to Daddy Jones’ recently opened patio to find your favorite new varietal (even if you can’t pronounce it) and get a taste of what Greece has to offer.

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