Domaine Paterianakis es una bodega familiar de tercera generación situada en la hermosa isla de Creta, una región con más de 4.000 años de historia vitivinícola. Como pioneros del cultivo ecológico de la uva en la isla, nos dedicamos a producir vinos no sólo de alta calidad, sino también 100% respetuosos con el medio ambiente. Nuestro compromiso con la agricultura ecológica significa que evitamos el uso de fertilizantes químicos o sintéticos, garantizando que nuestro proceso de producción no contamine el suelo, el agua ni la atmósfera. Esta dedicación a las prácticas sostenibles nos permite crear vinos naturales, auténticos y verdadera expresión del terruño cretense. Nuestra bodega está integrada verticalmente, lo que significa que controlamos cada paso del proceso de producción, desde el viñedo hasta la botella. Cultivamos seis variedades de uva autóctonas únicas junto a cinco variedades internacionales, utilizando las últimas técnicas ecológicas para producir vinos con una fuerte personalidad y una profunda conexión con la tierra. Los visitantes del Domaine Paterianakis pueden experimentar la rica tradición vinícola cretense mientras descubren los sabores distintivos que hacen que nuestros vinos sean realmente especiales.

La Bodega Idaia fue fundada por los enólogos Vassilis Laderos y Kalliopi Volitaki, empeñados en dar a conocer las variedades de uva autóctonas de Creta y sus diversos viñedos. Situada en el corazón de la región de viñedos cretenses, dentro de la zona de la DOP Dafnes, la bodega empezó humildemente en el año 2000 con sólo unos pocos depósitos de acero inoxidable y barricas. Con el tiempo, gracias a las sólidas relaciones con los viticultores locales, la Bodega Idaia ha ampliado sus operaciones. Hoy, la bodega produce unas 130.000 botellas al año, el 35% de las cuales se exportan a más de 10 países. La siguiente generación, ahora involucrada, promete continuar el legado. El viaje de la bodega comenzó con la pasión por el vino y el amor por Creta, que ayudaron a superar los retos iniciales. Mediante una cuidadosa inversión y dedicación, la infraestructura de la bodega creció, asegurando un equilibrio entre tradición e innovación. Con un firme enfoque en la viticultura local, la Bodega Idaia sigue comprometida con la excelencia, produciendo vinos que representan la rica cultura e historia de la región.

Over the millennia the Lefka Ori Mountains of Western Crete have absorbed the quiet lifecycle for thousands of the island’s native flora. Walking these mountains in the spring is a sensory adventure filled with the scents of rosemary, thyme, sage, lavender, and chamomile. In the fall, they descend back to the soil and are absorbed. The quiet lifecycle continues. Our philosophy at the Manousakis Winery is just as simple. We believe in carefully and organically cultivating our vines to absorb this scent-filled terroir. The flavors of the grapes combine with the herbs for a truly unique taste. Each bottle of Nostos captures the character of this verdant island, and the slopes of the Lefka Ori. The Manousakis Winery is the culmination of one man, its founder Theodore Manousakis. Ted, as he is more commonly called, was born in the village of Vatolakkos in 1943. He left his village eleven years later, into an unknown future. America: The Promised Land. For an enterprising young man, the possibilities were endless. After university, Ted was successful in a number of business endeavors including industrial security, real estate development, and hospitality. But success came at a price: the near loss of his Cretan heritage. The Return: Nostos is the yearning to come home. It propelled Ted to the land of his birth, and on a higher level than mere visitor. He wanted to give something back to the island that he loved. Wine was a way of life in the village and a memory from his boyhood. There was no better way to pay homage to those traditions and it brought people together to enjoy life’s simple pleasures. Soil, sun, weather conditions and yearning converged to perfection. The Manousakis Winery was born and the first vineyards planted in 1993.

Archanes (Greek(Gr): Αρχάνες) is a traditional settlement which it is located in the heart of a major wine-making area of Heraklion (Gr.: Ηράκλειο),Crete. Archaeological evidence found in the area, proving evidence of the uniqueness of Archanes location and climate as one of the most important wine-growing regions since the Minoan era. Archanes roads Archanes is located in the center of the most important wine and agricultural region of Crete. The village is located 14 km. south-east of Heraklion, at the foot of the sacred mountain Giouchtas (Gr.: Γιούχτας), and 9 km. south of the archaeological site of Knossos Palace (25-35 minutes drive). The landmarks of Arhanes - is hills and valleys, fertile valleys and rich flora. Archanes resembles a small neo-classical town surrounded by olive groves and endless vineyards. A romantic village full of blooming gardens, famous for the important archaeological sites, the interesting museums and the excellent restaurants and tavernas. Archanes is well known for its typical Cretan architecture. Many old houses in the village have been restored, and the village has been even awarded as the second "best restored village in Europe".

The story of the renowned MINOS Cretan wines starts unravelling in the mid 19th century, when Antonis Miliarakis left the village of Miliarado in the province of Viannos, in Crete, and settled in the region of Peza, 17 km south of Heraklion. Peza was a riders’ resting area, where horses were fed and riders relaxed and spent the night before setting off the next morning for Chandakas or Megalo Castro – which was the name Heraklion was known by at the time – the gates of which opened in the morning and closed in the evening. Thus, Peza was the perfect place for inns, taverns and coffee shops to be established. During the last years of the Ottoman rule, those who anticipated what the future held, bought land and fields from the Ottomans who lived in the village, who were gradually abandoning Crete; this meant that many Peza locals found themselves the proud owners of noteworthy real estate during the first years of the Cretan State (1989-1913). With the end of Ottoman rule and the abolition of closing the gates into Chandakas, the role played by Peza as a place for lodging became obsolete and economic activity in the area turned to wine trading. Many wine merchants were active during the 1870-1930 period: they bought grapes from farmers in the region, pressed them in their own presses, stored the wine in wooden barrels and then sold it on the domestic market, in Emparo, Viannos, Lasithi, Messara, and Heraklion. This was the economic and business environment in which the Miliarakis brothers business grew: they turned Antonakis’ Inn, which had provided travellers with a plate of hot food and a glass of wine since the 19th century, into a winery.

The winery of Mediterra lies in a building ground of 15.000m2 in the village Kounavi of the Nikos Kazantzakis municipality in the prefecture of Heraklion in Crete. The winery’s facilities consist of the area where the wine grapes are collected and processed for vinification, the underground storage and wine ageing area, the two wine cellars with the oak barrels and barriques, the bottling facility and the area for the preservation of the final products. The storage capacity reaches 19.000hl in stainless steel and oak tanks, while the two wine cellars dispose of over 500 oak barrels (300lt) and barriques (225lt). The vinification area includes transportation lines and mechanical crushers for the collection of the wine grapes, a heat exchanger for the must, three pneumatic presses, stainless steel and oak tanks and an automatic system controlling the temperature and the development of the alcoholic fermentation. In the wine storage tanks which lie in the underground, air conditioned area, there is a central system filling the empty space with inert gas. The bottling line that was recently modernized is completely automated and its production ability exceeds the 4.500 bottles per hour. In detail, the bottling line consists of the empty bottles depalletizer, the complex system that includes the rinsing, bottling and corking (or Stelvin capping) machines, the optical unit controlling the filling and the closure of the bottles, the unit for the positioning of capsules, the labeling machine (for self-adhesive and glue labels) as well as the complex system for the formation, filling and sealing of the cartons.

Technology and knowledge in oenology easily create good wine. However, when your goal is the best quality, then the winning factor is for the wine to originate from the best vineyard. That is why the Zacharioudakis family happily invested in a Cretan organically cultivated vineyard that was planted on the hill Orthi Petra in South Crete, a location that can guarantee exceptional harvests.

The creation of extraordinary wine demands serious attention to the best possible utilization of the merits and characteristics of any given place. The uniqueness of the specific region, the topography, the soil composition, microbiological and the microclimatic conditions, the selection of suitable varieties and in the best possible conditions for grown, are enormus challenges. The vineyards in the region are not monoculture, surrounded by olive, peanut, various fruit and natural vegetation, is involved in a rich and balanced ecosystem.