Estate Argyros

Estate Argyros is a wine producer located on the island of Santorini in Greece. The vineyards are planted on volcanic soils and cover 26 hectares (65 acres) of land on the island. Native grape varieties like Assyrtico, Athiri and Aidani are planted here, making wines in a range of styles, from dry whites to sweet Vinsanto.

The estate was originally founded in 1903 by Georgios Argyros who started making local wines using traditional Santorinian methods. When the estate passed to Matthew Argyros in 1950, he expanded the vineyards to 6ha (15 acres), and then in 1974, when his son Yiannis Argyros took over, the vineyards increased again to 26ha (65 acres).

Argyros' vineyards are situated at altitudes ranging from 115-500ft (35-150m) above sea level on rich volcanic soils. The vines are cultivated in the traditional basket style, which shelters the grapes from Santorini's strong winds.

The Assyrtiko Argyros is the estate's flagship wine and dates back to the founding of the estate in 1903. There are several other wines based on Assyrtiko, as well as three sweet Vinsanto wines: Vinsanto Mezzo Argyros, Vinsanto Argyros and Vinsanto Chocolate (made, as its name suggests, with chocolate). The grapes for the Vinsanto wines are dried outdoors on the dry, sun-baked ground – a technique unique to this region. Argyros also makes a red wine from Mavrotragano, a rare indigenous variety.