Greek wine is not only resistant during the crisis, but managed to grow despite adverse economic conditions prevailing in the country and the imposition of “unfair and counter-development” taxes, Stelios Boutaris, president of the Wine Producers Association of the Northern Greece Vineyard (ENOABE) said.
Speaking to reporters, Boutaris noted: “I dare say that the crisis has been good for Greek wine, despite problems and an unfair and anti-development tax imposed…During the crisis, Greece was front page news around the world and we see that in the last few years people abroad are searching for good Greek stories. Greek wine is one of these good stories. The quality of Greek wine has risen sharply, at this point you don’t see any bad wines, you can find uninteresting wines, but not bad.”
Particularly in the category of 10-20 euros per bottle, especially white wines, Greek wine producers have made huge steps and Greece can now compete with any country in the world. Northern Greece is moving in the same direction, since the region grows a wide range of wine varieties.
“We are at an era when nice things happen and wine makers have become internationally-known, travelling around, speaking about Greek wine from Tokyo to Australia and Canada, almost everywhere. It is very important that we all speak the same language abroad. I believe we are facing a great opportunity for Greek wineries and that we will see a lot of positive things in the future,” Boutaris said.
Presenting the goals of ENOABE, Boutaris noted five goals: financial strength and independence, promoting wine tourism, promoting and protecting wines, education and creating a “Wine House” in Thessaloniki.

As more and more people around the world appreciate the wines of Greece, the industry is a bright spot in the economy of the country. Hopefully, the lessons learned in promoting this exceptional Greek product will translate to other areas of the economy.