In 1861 Greece was hardly a state, still trying to figure out it's identity after 400 years of occupation, when a German guy bought some land and founded a winery that is still around, making it the oldest winery in the country!
It was April when I visited it, the vineyards ware all green, as the new leaves had popped up and I was very pleasantly surprised by a visit that I was considering a waste of time!
It was my friends idea to stop by and I didn't bother searching (or even asking him) for some information in advance. I was familiar with the brand name and in my mind it was related to a cheap sweet wine that I didn't like :)
You can imagine that I was caught totally of guard when I stepped out of the car and faced a proper castle!
ACHAIA CLAUSS, located on the namesake hill, was founded in 1861 by the Bavarian Gustav Clauss who came to Patras in 1854 to work at a German raisin export company. On one of his trips, he got to know the region and was impressed by its stunning scenery. He initially bought a vineyard of just 15 acres and eventually built the Winecastle, still preserved until today.
source
The sweet red wine that Gustav Clauss first produced in 1873 was given the name “Mavrodaphne” in honour of Daphne, his Greek beloved with the beautiful black eyes (Mavro means black in Greek), who died at a young age. Gustav Clauss is considered to be the inventor and establisher of the concept of Wine Tourism in Greece, following the visit of Austro-Hungarian Empress Sissi in 1885, in whose honour he even named a cellar (Imperial Cellar).
source
And if I was impressed by the old buildings and the castle-like facilities, entering the Imperial Cellar was a mind blowing experience! I am not exaggerating at all if I liken it with a temple for wine lovers :)
You can probably suspect how big those barrels are but just to be sure I asked my friend to stand in front of them. And let me tell you that Babis is not a short fellow!
Their size is just abyssal and so beautifully carved, I was truly speechless! And the cherry on top is that in some of them there is wine aging from 1873, actual wine that is in those barrels for over a century!
Even the wine shop is a piece of art. Imagine that this building used to be someone's home, how cool can be living there :)
And as if all that wasn't enough, a copy of the founder's office in display, to give an even more vivid tone of authenticity to the whole experience!
No need to say that if you are a wine lover, tasting is part of the deal but I skipped it. The tour was more than satisfactory and I had a big day ahead!
All the pictures and the words are mine.
Thank you for reading and if you want to know more about me you can check out my introduction post.
Commenting, upvoting and rebloging are highly appreciated!