The history of Greek Wine Cellars D. Kourtakis S.A. dates back to 1895. It was then that the company was founded by Vassili Kourtakis (1865-1946). He had the rare distinction of being the first person in modern Greece to obtain a diploma in oenology. He established his wine-making activities at Markopoulo, some 30 kilometres to the east of Athens, in the heart of what was then one of the main wine-growing regions of Greece – the Mesogia. Since then it has developed into one of the largest wine-producing companies in Greece.

The company’s subsequent development has mirrored the changes that have taken place in Greek wine-making. Its wines were first commercialized in bulk and distributed in casks throughout the local province of Attica, in Athens, and the nearby islands. In those far-off days the traditional wine of Greece – the Retsina – dominated the scene and it was the wine that Vassili Kourtakis first produced. He took great care in the production of his wine and the Kourtaki name soon became recognized by the customers of the wine stores and the tavernas as a guarantee of quality and consistency.

It was then left to Dimitri Kourtakis (1908-2005), the son of the founder, to begin the marketing of the company’s wines in bottles and to extend their distribution throughout all of Greece. He was a great personality in Greek wine making circles and was active for some 70 years  in  developing the family’s business.  It was he, who developed the Retsina Kourtaki brand into more than 3 million case sales annually, making it in his time one of the largest wine brands in the world.

Today, more than a century after its founding, the company is still owned and managed by the Kourtakis family. The third generation is represented by the grandson of the founder, another Vassili Kourtakis, who is the current managing director. In the last 25 years, under his direction, the company has become one of the largest wine-producing and bottling operations in Greece, with wineries in several of the most important wine-producing regions – Attica, the Peloponnese, the island of Crete, central Greece, and in some islands of the Aegean sea – and supplying not only the domestic market but also dynamically developing export sales to an increasing number of overseas markets. Currently, its annual production is some 35 million bottles, with 40% of this volume being exported.

This achievement has been the result of a combination of determined effort and constant devotion on the part of the Kourtakis family. It has always been among the first to implement new methods and invest in the latest technology, the guiding aim being to produce ever better wines.

The company’s largest winery at Ritsona in central Greece is a perfect example. It employs one of the latest techniques for gently pressing the grapes – only the must from the first pressing is used for the bottled wines and the must is then allowed to ferment slowly at very low temperatures to ensure the preservation of the delicate and distinctive characteristics of the wines . The ‘Crystal Flow’ method patented by the Alfa-Laval company is used to stabilise the wines, the Kourtaki winery at Ritsona having been the first in Europe to install this system. The wine storage and processing capacity at Ritsona is the largest in Greece. The many stainless steel tanks arranged in a cruciform pattern have been dubbed the ‘steel cathedral.’

After 1990 the company broadened its interests and developed geographically in order to expand its range of wines further and include more wines of both regional origin (country wines) and appellation status. Furthermore, the company in recent years has pursued a strategy to include among its portfolio wines of limited production but of high prestige.

This led in the 1990s to the ownership of the Calliga brand and in 2004 to the company taking a major participation in Oenoforos S.A., a highly respected “boutique” winery founded by a noted Greek wine maker, Angelos Rouvalis, current President of the Greek Wine Federation. It is located on the north-facing slopes of the Peloponnesian mountains overlooking the town of Aigion and the Gulf of Corinth beyond. The wines it produces consist of “Asprolithi”, a white wine with appellation status, a range of Vin de Pays from both indigenous and international grapes under the “Mikros Vorias” label, and a barrel-aged range under the “Ianos” label. (For further details go to www.oenoforos.gr).

In the meantime, the increase in its wine interests and its expanding portfolio had created the need to separate the company’s activities into divisions so as to give the necessary focus to the different wine ranges e.g. the Calliga wines, which had a strong position with the restaurant and other on-premise outlets.

It became apparent that the original name of the company, D. Kourtakis S.A., was no longer satisfactory to represent its diverse interests and activities. For this reason the company’s name was changed to Greek Wine Cellars in order to envelop all the divisions under one umbrella.

With regard to the marketing of the wines in export markets the company’s efforts are separated into three divisions :

The wines of the Kourtaki division cover a product range from the traditional Retsina to quality wines possessing appellation status.

The wines of the Calliga division are largely distributed to HORECA (hotels, restaurants and catering) outlets.

The boutique – limited production – wines of the Oenoforos division are directed to the specialist stores and select on-premise outlets.