Stop by the Koutsoyannopoulos Wine Museum to leanr about Santorini’s wine-making history
Credit Shutterstock.com/Antonio Gravante
The museum tells the history of wine-making on the island from 1660 to 1970
Taste the museum’s own wines too while you’re there
Credit Shutterstock.com/Antonio Gravante
Last updated: 27 July, 2024
Share it:
Santorini’s arid, volcanic terrain produces some of Greece’s finest wines – a tradition that dates back more than 3,500 years. The practice of cultivating vines in niabelos (specially pruned baskets) to protect the grapes from the harsh winters also dates back centuries.
There are ten professional wineries and several smaller concessions on Santorini. The bone-dry, citrus-and-smoke Assyrtiko, Aidani and Athiri whites, and smooth, sweet Vin Santo are the island’s most famous exports.
Recommendations
4
Domaine Sigalas
Santorini, Greek Islands, Greece
Experience
One of Greece’s most groundbreaking winemakers, on a verdant plain below Oia. A youthful team talk guests through the estate’s award-winning wines, paired with delicious meze from the Cyclades.
Min age 18
Good for age: 18+
Estate Argyros
Santorini, Greek Islands, Greece
Experience
This family-run estate is one of the oldest vineyards on Santorini. Located in remote Episkopi Gonia, this picturesque winery uses only indigenous grapes such as Assyrtiko, Athiri, Aidani, Mandilaria, Mavrathiro, Mavrotragano and Voudomato.
Min age 18
Good for age: 18+
Gaia winery
Santorini, Greek Islands, Greece
Experience
This small winery, in a converted tomato factory by the sea, produces crisp white Thalassitis. Its aromatic oak-aged Assyrtiko vinegar is less well known but equally delicious.
Min age 18
Good for age: 18+
Koutsoyannopoulos Wine Museum
Santorini, Greek Islands, Greece
Experience
This small but interesting museum outside Kamari offers great insights regarding Santorini’s unique viniculture: and 400 years if wine-making history. You can sample the winery’s offerings, too. Here the vines are twisted into crown-shaped baskets so the grapes are protected from harsh winter winds.
Adult price: £12
Good for age: 18+
Logistics
Price: Free
Minimum age: 18
Age suitable: 18+
When: All year around
Duration: 1+ hours
Getting there & doing it
All wineries can be visited independently; booking ahead isn’t usually necessary. Many wineries offer guided tours and tastings led by their own staff. If you’re interested in learning more about the island’s long history of viticulture, and sampling wines from several different estates, it’s better to book a tour.
When to do it
Vineyards generally open daily for visitors from April to October. Opening times for tastings varies by vineyard. Go late afternoon or early evening, to avoid drinking during the midday heat.
Who to go with: organised tours
14
Our selection of the best Viator tours of this attraction or activity
Sip your way around Santorini on a half-day wine tour, visiting three traditional wineries dotted around the picturesque island.
While savoring up to 12 different varietals made from grapes such as the indigenous Assyrtiko, learn all about the island’s unique viticulture that produces some of the crispest whites and seductively sweet wines in the Mediterranean.
Walk around a volcanic vineyard, explore the wineries' cellars and enjoy a platter of local cheese to eat alongside the wine.
Exclusive Santorini Experiences: Classic & Full-Day Tours
Classic Highlight Tour (4.5 hours)
Explore Santorini in a small group (6-12 guests). Stroll through Oia, admiring its blue-domed churches, Cycladic charm, and cave houses with breathtaking caldera views. Capture stunning panoramas from Prophet Elias Monastery, then explore Pyrgos, a timeless village. Enhance your experience with an optional wine tasting (€20 per person) at a renowned winery, savoring Santorini’s distinct volcanic flavors.
Full-Day Tour (7 hours)
Go beyond the highlights with all stops from the Classic Tour, plus a visit to Akrotiri Excavations (entry not included, €20 per person), where an ancient city is frozen in time. See the Red Beach’s striking volcanic cliffs and wander through Emporio Village, a medieval maze with a Venetian castle.
Both tours include an expert tour leader /driver and comfortable transportation, ensuring a seamless and unforgettable Santorini adventure.
Taste the celebrated wines of Santorini on a 4-hour wine adventure to experience the amazing sunset of Santorini at a cliff-top winery alongside local Island Tapas. Explore the cellars of each winery and see where the wine is bottled and matured. Learn about the island’s unique viticulture, which is the first to produce wine in the Mediterranean, with a Greek wine expert. Admire the impressive countryside filled with scenic villages and rolling hills. This tour includes 12 samples of wine, admission fees to the wineries, a Tapas platter filled with island specialties, hotel pickup /drop-off, and deluxe transportation between the wineries.
Visit three traditional local wineries and cellars in the countryside of Santorini with your local guide. Taste a selection of different wine styles from Santorini and Greece. At the same time, you stroll through an actual vineyard on the volcanic soil and discover the unique viticulture on a 4-hour wine adventure.
• Visit three traditional wineries in different locations of picturesque Santorini
• Learn about the unique viticulture of Santorini as you explore a wine field.
• Explore the cellars of each winery and see where wines are bottled and matured.
• Sample 10-12 wines, including Assyrtiko, Nykteri, and Vinsanto.
• Pair your tastings with local cheese, dry bread, etc.
Visit: Roussos Winery - Koutsoyannopoulos Winery Museum - Venetsanos Vinery
A unique chance for every wine lover to visit some of the best wineries of the island and taste incomparable santorinian wines.
Discover the ancient winemaking traditions of Santorini during this wine tasting tour. Learn about the “protected appellation origin” of the island, with vines dating as far back as 400 years, at the wine museum. Then, enjoy tastings of local wine varieties paired with snacks at two selected vineyards. This introductory tour is great to get a feel for the wines of Santorini.