The vineyards are not far from the Northern Greek city of Thessaloniki. In good weather and the right light you can probably see it.
Stock photography samples from Domaine Gerovassiliou, images by Per Karlsson.
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Ktima Domaine Gerovassiliou in Epanomi, Greece, is located not far from Thessaloniki in Macedonia. It was founded by the oenologist Evangelos Gerovassiliou. It has been a forerunner in Greece to champion local indigenous grape varieties: assyrtiko, agiorgitiko, malagousia etc. It is generally regarded as one of the best wine producers in northern Greece. From the vinery you have a view over the vineyards and over the sea. The winery is modern, equipped with stainless steel tanks, temperature control etc. It also houses a wine museum displaying old artefacts: amphora, cork screws etc.
Ktima Biblia chora, meaning simply the Biblia chora Estate. Apparently Biblia is the name of an old indigenous grape variety in northern Greece.
Stock photography samples from Biblia Chora Winery, Pangeon, images by Per Karlsson.
Ktima Biblia Chora Winery was founded by Evangelos Gerovassiliou and Vassilis Tsaktsarlis. It is located in northern Greece in Macedonia, in the Pangeon region. It has an impressive new winery building with all modern facilities. They have a wide variety of Greek vine varieties planted and have a special vineyard section displaying many indigenous grapes: assyrtiko, xinomavro, agiorgitiko etc. They also have fashionable international grape varieties such as sauvignon blanc, chardonnay, pinot noir cabernet etc. They make red, white and rosé wines.
Wine tasting. Wine glasses. Henrque HM Uva, Herdade da Mingorra, Alentejo, Portugal
Herdade da Mingorra (HM UVA) Winery stock photography samples
Herdade da Mingorra (also called H.M. Uva, after the founder Henrique Uva) is a new winery in the Alentejo (Baixo Alentejo) region in Portugal, some two hours' drive south east from Lisbon. It has 1400 hectares of land of which 135 ha are planted with vines. Being recent the winery is equipped with modern technology, stainless steel tanks, punching down machines, laboratory etc. The investment was in the order of 2 million euro. They make a range of wines, from very affordable blends to top of the range prestige cuvees: Alfaraz (blends and single variety), Uvas Castas, Vinhas da Iras (Grapes of Wrath), and Terras d'Uva are the names used.
Vineyards. Oak tree. Herdade da Malhadinha Nova, Alentejo, Portugal.
Herdade da Malhadinha Nova sample stock photography.
Herdade da Malhadinha Nova in the Alentejo region in Portugal is located some two hours' drive from Lisbon. It is run by the two brothers Joao and Paulo Soares together with their families. The Soares family bought a run down old farm house but became so enthused by the region that the decided to restore it and the vineyards to a perfect state. The Malhadinha Nova vineyard is primarily on schist soil planted with Portuguese grape varieties: touriga naciional, aragones, trincadeira, alicante bouschet, alfrocheiro, arinto, roupeiro antao vaz, as well as international varieties: syrah, cabernet sauvignon, chardonnay. They make a range of wines under different labels: Malhadinha, Monte Beceguina, Pequeno Joao, Marias da Malhadinha as well as varietal labels. At the vineyard they also have a restaurant serving local specialities, e.g. dry cured ham from the black Alentejo pig and traditional local stews. They have also built a small luxury hotel on the grounds.
Winery building at night, illuminated. Alpha Estate Winery, Amyndeon, Macedonia, Greece.
And the explanation for the headline. The picture is taken from the vineyard. It was lateish evening. I was perilously balancing on top of a wooden box shielding an irrigation pump. Irrigation pumps always leak a little bit so the soil was very humid, a few puddles here and there. Which is a very fertile ground for mosquitoes. Balancing on the box, fighting the insects, trying to set the camera... Lots of fun. But worth it.
Apologies for the rather silly headline, but sometimes it is low tide in inspiration.
It is of course tsipouro since we're in Greece here, more specifically at the tsipouro bar of YaMas (excellent restaurant with a good wine selection, worth trying) in Thessaloniki. (Or is it perhaps ouzo all the same?):
Saffron flavoured ouzo. YaMas restaurant on the waterfront. Thessaloniki, Macedonia, Greece
Perhaps one should call it the International Wine Bloggers Conference instead of the European Wine Bloggers Conference (those Americans call theirs just The Wine Bloggers Conference). Or maybe there will be an Asian and an African to come. Why not?
I have not yet signed up for it. don't quite know why. Maybe i should do that now? Seems nice enough as an event.
Looking at some of the programs that the kind organisers (Ryan, Gabriella and probably some more) have set up around the conference (revving-up days and cooling off days?) I saw that I've already been to several of the place they've planned for. Pity. On the other hand it'd give me all the more time to socialize...
So, I thought I'd give you a bit of a teaser of how it may look when you come there (as of course you will!?).
Grabbing a bottle... But the point is, I am testing this Photoshelter hosted service that allows me to make my wine picture archive available.
And it allows you to grab the code for any of the slide shows and republish them where you like. So if, for example, you're posting something on the Scala Dei winery in Priorat you can "grab" the code for the slide show below and use it as illustration. (However, apart from grabbing the slide shows it is not OK to take our photos and use them elsewhere for illustration - unless you have our permission. All photographs are protected by copyright.)
Zilavka grape variety. A plastic container trap hanging on a viney. Filled with a mix of vinegar and sweet fruit juice to attract insects moths flies. To monitor and capture insects. One of their best vineyards with very poor soil on a hilltop mountain near Citluk and Zitomislic. Vinarija Citluk winery in Citluk near Mostar, part of Hercegovina Vino, Mostar. Federation Bosne i Hercegovine. Bosnia Herzegovina, Europe.
Do you have wine & travel picture needs? Let us know if you have any specific photo requests from wineries and vineyards.
(So what's this "testing" about, you might ask? I am trialling a service called Photoshelter, to store images online and make them available for licensing and purchase: BKWine Photography / Per Karlsson on Photoshelter: http://pa.photoshelter.com/c/bkwinephotography. And of course just plain viewing. This will allow me to creat galleries and slide shows that I can embed, as, for exampled, shown above. One difficulty to get around is that slide shows don't work well in emails (or blog update notifications). One neat feature is that these slide shows can also be 'grabbed' by anyone who wants to illustrate e.g. a blog post on the subject. Benefit to them: illustration. Benefit to me: marketing.)
Do you have wine & travel picture needs? Let us know if you have any specific photo requests from wineries and vineyards.
In the 1980s the Cusine' family took over this wine property and started an ambitious program of replanting. They planted, among other grape varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah and other !"international" varities but also kept the traditional grapes such as Macabeo, Xarel-Lo, Parellada and Ull de Liebre (Tempranillo). The castle-like main building is surrounded by land with a very good micro climate where e.g. Cabernet Sauvignon makes very good wine.
Vines equipped with black rubber or plastic tubes for articifical irrigation watering. Vranac grape variety. Typical red reddish clay sand sandy soil mixed with pebbles rocks stones in varying amount. Vineyard on the plain near Mostar city. Hercegovina Vino, Mostar. Federation Bosne i Hercegovine. Bosnia Herzegovina, Europe.
Do you have wine & travel picture needs? Let us know if you have any specific photo requests from wineries and vineyards.
Grape bunch on the vine just before veraison (grapes taking colour), one grape has already changed color from unripe green to ripe blue. Detail of the tip of the bunch. Vranac grape variety. Hercegovina Vino, Mostar. Federation Bosne i Hercegovine. Bosnia Herzegovina, Europe.
Do you have wine & travel picture needs? Let us know if you have any specific photo requests from wineries and vineyards.
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