Hatzidakis Winery

Haridimos Hatzidakis was born in Crete in 1967 and trained in agronomy and oenology at the Technical School of Wine and Beverages in Athens before moving to Santorini in 1991 to take an internship at the Boutari winery on the island. He rose to head oenologist at the Boutari Santorini property, where he met his future wife Konstantina Chryssou, a Santorinian native then serving as the winery's Director of Hospitality. In 1996 Konstantina led Haridimos to a small family parcel at Pyrgos Kallistis on the inland slope below the Profitis Ilias monastery, and the couple planted a half-hectare of indigenous Aidani under organic farming on the parcel. The Hatzidakis Winery itself was established at Pyrgos Kallistis in 1997, with the cellar built into a converted cave on the outskirts of the village. The early years were defined by extensive replanting and the careful nurturing of older parcels acquired across the southern Santorinian plateau, with Haridimos building the working architecture of the winery while continuing to consult elsewhere on the island until he could devote himself to the estate full-time.

• Haridimos Hatzidakis was born in Crete in 1967 and trained in agronomy and oenology at the Technical School of Wine and Beverages in Athens before moving to Santorini in 1991.
• Haridimos joined the Boutari winery on Santorini in 1991 and rose to head oenologist; he met his future wife Konstantina Chryssou at the same property, where she served as Director of Hospitality.
• In 1996 Konstantina led Haridimos to a small family parcel at Pyrgos Kallistis on the inland slope below the Profitis Ilias monastery, and the couple planted a half-hectare of indigenous Aidani under organic farming.
• The Hatzidakis Winery itself was established at Pyrgos Kallistis in 1997, with the cellar built into a converted cave on the outskirts of the village.
• The early years involved extensive replanting and the nurturing of older parcels acquired across the southern Santorinian plateau, with Haridimos building the working architecture of the estate.

Pyrgos Kallistis sits on the inland slope of the southern Santorinian plateau, below the Profitis Ilias monastery and away from the caldera-edge tourist circuit of Oia and Fira. The Hatzidakis cellar is built into a converted cave on the outskirts of the village, providing constant humidity and temperature stability for fermentation and ageing without industrial climate control. The estate vineyard surface spans organically certified parcels of Assyrtiko, Aidani, and Mavrotragano across multiple southern Santorinian villages, with the original 1996 half-hectare Aidani parcel preserved as the founding plot. All vines are ungrafted on their own roots, sustained by the volcanic aspa soils whose mineral poverty and very low clay content render the island inhospitable to phylloxera, and trained in the traditional kouloura basket-weave that protects fruit from the meltemi winds and intense summer sun. The Louros parcel in Pyrgos is the centrepiece of the estate's old-vine surface: a small block of ungrafted Assyrtiko vines surpassing one hundred years of age, harvested later than the surrounding parcels to allow full ripeness within the high natural acidity that defines Santorini Assyrtiko.

• The cellar is built into a converted cave on the outskirts of Pyrgos Kallistis, providing constant humidity and temperature stability for fermentation and ageing without industrial climate control.
• The estate vineyard surface spans organically certified parcels of Assyrtiko, Aidani, and Mavrotragano across multiple southern Santorinian villages on the inland plateau.
• All vines are ungrafted on their own roots, sustained by the volcanic aspa soils whose mineral poverty renders Santorini inhospitable to phylloxera, and trained in the traditional kouloura basket-weave.
• The Louros parcel in Pyrgos contains ungrafted Assyrtiko vines surpassing one hundred years of age, harvested later than the surrounding parcels to allow full ripeness.
• The original 1996 half-hectare Aidani parcel is preserved as the founding plot, anchoring the estate's organic certification and the modern restoration of Aidani as a varietal grape on Santorini.

Haridimos Hatzidakis is widely credited as the first Santorinian winemaker to ferment with indigenous yeasts, a practice now widely emulated across the island and one of the technical signatures that defines the modern Santorini fine-wine register. He was an early defender of the underused indigenous Santorinian varieties, with the 1997 single-varietal Mavrotragano bottling marking the first such release on the island and anchoring the parallel restoration of the rare red variety alongside Domaine Sigalas. The cuvée architecture today spans the entry-tier estate Santorini Assyrtiko, the Cuvée No. 15 (100% Assyrtiko from organically farmed ungrafted vines aged 10 to 40 years), the Aidani varietal (a floral, low-acid white from the rescued blending grape), the Mavrotragano red (single-variety since 1997, aged 18 months in second and third-fill small oak), the Skitali label introduced after 2017 (100% Assyrtiko with cold maceration and lees work in stainless steel; the Skitali Barrel adds a year in stainless plus a year in used oak), the Assyrtiko de Mylos Vieilles Vignes from older blocks, and the single-vineyard Assyrtiko de Louros. The Cuvée No. 15 line carries an organic certification and is bottled with deliberately conservative intervention, fermented at cool temperatures with no additions other than minimal sulphur at bottling.

• Haridimos Hatzidakis is widely credited as the first Santorinian winemaker to ferment with indigenous yeasts, a practice now widely emulated across the island.
• The 1997 Hatzidakis Mavrotragano was the first single-varietal Mavrotragano bottling on Santorini, anchoring the modern restoration of the rare indigenous red variety alongside Domaine Sigalas.
• Cuvée No. 15 is the estate's organic 100% Assyrtiko from ungrafted vines aged 10 to 40 years, fermented at cool temperatures with deliberately conservative intervention.
• The Skitali label was introduced after 2017 to mark the generational passing; bottlings include a stainless-steel Skitali and a Skitali Barrel with a year in stainless and a year in used oak.
• The cuvée architecture also includes the Aidani varietal, the Mavrotragano red, the Assyrtiko de Mylos Vieilles Vignes from older blocks, and the single-vineyard Assyrtiko de Louros.

The Assyrtiko de Louros is Hatzidakis's single-vineyard flagship, drawn exclusively from a parcel of century-old ungrafted Assyrtiko vines in the Louros vineyard at Pyrgos under certified organic farming. The wine has carried the Louros label since 2011, with the parcel harvested deliberately later than the surrounding Hatzidakis blocks to allow full ripeness within the high natural acidity that defines Santorini Assyrtiko at the level of single-vineyard fine wine. Vinification is unusual for the island: the wine is fermented in oak rather than the more common stainless-steel pathway, then aged for 24 months on fine lees in oak barrels and bottled unfiltered at roughly 2,400 bottles per vintage. The result is one of Santorini's most ageworthy and structurally distinctive Assyrtiko cuvées, with a richer textural register than the cellar's stainless-steel bottlings and a deep mineral closure that tracks the century-old vine pedigree. The Louros bottling sits within the broader cluster of single-vineyard Santorinian Assyrtiko alongside Sigalas Kavalieros and Estate Argyros Cuvée Monsignori, framing the modern site-specific identity of the island's flagship grape.

• Assyrtiko de Louros is sourced exclusively from a parcel of century-old ungrafted Assyrtiko vines in the Louros vineyard at Pyrgos under certified organic farming.
• The Louros label has carried the single-vineyard designation since 2011, harvested deliberately later than surrounding parcels to allow full ripeness within the high natural acidity.
• Vinification is unusual for Santorini: oak fermentation followed by 24 months on fine lees in oak barrels, with bottling unfiltered at roughly 2,400 bottles per vintage.
• The wine sits within the modern cluster of single-vineyard Santorinian Assyrtiko alongside Sigalas Kavalieros and Estate Argyros Cuvée Monsignori.
• The textural register is richer than the cellar's stainless-steel bottlings, with a deep mineral closure that tracks the century-old ungrafted vine pedigree.

Haridimos Hatzidakis died on 11 August 2017 at the age of 50, a sudden loss that drew obituaries and tributes across the international Greek-wine trade and from the major US wine press. The family chose not to sell the winery: his eldest daughter Stella Hatzidakis took the role of director, and has run the estate since 2017 alongside her mother Konstantina Chryssou, siblings Antonis and Ariadne, and a working team of younger Santorinian winemakers. The Skitali label was introduced after 2017 as a deliberate marker of the generational passing: Skitali is the Greek word for the relay baton, and the cuvée's architecture and packaging reference the family's transition. The estate has continued under Stella's direction with the cuvée architecture intact, the organic certification preserved, and the indigenous-yeast fermentation discipline maintained, and has expanded its international distribution across Europe, North America, and the major Mediterranean markets. United States distribution runs through Salveto Imports and other regional importers. Hatzidakis Winery sits alongside Estate Argyros, Domaine Sigalas, and Gaia Wines Santorini in the modern reference set for the island's flagship Assyrtiko.

• Haridimos Hatzidakis died on 11 August 2017 at the age of 50; the family chose not to sell the winery and committed to continuing the estate under the next generation.
• Stella Hatzidakis, the founders' eldest daughter, has served as director since 2017, alongside mother Konstantina Chryssou and siblings Antonis and Ariadne.
• The Skitali label was introduced after 2017 as a deliberate marker of the generational passing; Skitali is the Greek word for the relay baton.
• The estate has continued under Stella's direction with the cuvée architecture intact, the organic certification preserved, and the indigenous-yeast fermentation discipline maintained.
• Hatzidakis Winery sits alongside Estate Argyros, Domaine Sigalas, and Gaia Wines Santorini in the modern reference set for Santorinian Assyrtiko on the international fine-wine trade.