Oenops Wine – ‘Oenops’ means ‘Wine Face’ – was founded in Greece, the Land of Dionysus, in 2015, by the talented winemaker Nikos Karatzas.

The company owns no vineyards. Rather, they work with growers of indigenous varieties from selected terroirs/regions in Greece, primarily cool-climate sites and aged vines.

Above all, Oenops works with ambitious growers with a sustainable philosophy approach.

Their mission is to source great fruit and craft great wines from it. The approach of Oenops Wines is to express the typicity a grape may carry from the variety and the place it comes from, aiming to produce authentic, fruit-forward wines.

Oenops uses no protocols. As they state, “we taste, taste, and adapt our approach to each lot based on our philosophy. Our goal is to produce tasteful, elegant wines that add value to our customers’ precious moments.”

Indigenous varieties like Malagousia, Assyrtiko, Vidiano, Roditis, Xinomavro, Limniona, and Mavroudi are carefully selected for that purpose. Each of the plots is treated as one lot in the winery; this way, they better understand the work done in the vineyard and are able to improve annually.

“The prices are miraculously low for the quality delivered,” notes Jancis Robinson.

Some ratings by Decanter and Jancis Robinson for Oenops Varietal Wines include: Vidiano Decanter 95p, Limniona Decanter 96p, and Apla Rose Decanter 90p.

Descriptions of two favorites follow:

Oenops, Apla White 2020 Greece 12.5%
60% Malagousia, 30% Assyrtiko, and 10% 45-year-old Roditis blend from three different parts of Greece. Aged for just three months in tanks or amphora on fine lees before bottling.
Florally fragrant and very nicely balanced. No one component dominates, yet the blend goes on and on in the mouth. This is a great demonstration of the sophistication of modern Greek wine. Clean and fresh. VGV 16.5 Drink 2022–24 JR

Oenops, Apla Red 2020 Greece 13%
50% Xinomavro, 30% Limniona, and 20% Mavroudi blend from vines 15 to 50 years old from three different regions.
There is a lot of interest in this offering as Xinomavro’s typical, charred notes seem to dominate. “This wine seems to have quite a future too,” Oenops Wine states. VGV 16.5 Drink 2022– 26 JR