Traveling to Greece...in Florida

THANK YOU MIKE ROWE
Every year my grandmother takes me on vacation with her, just a few days in St. Augustine. This year, we did something different – we visited Tarpon Springs. Located just north of Tampa, near New Port Richey, on the west coast, it's an easy drive from just about anywhere. Being mainly a Greek community, it’s famous for its sponge docks (Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe did an episode on sponge diving there), fabulous Greek cuisine, chamois skins, and hand-made soap. Having not experienced much Greek food or wine, I was excited to try something new.


SPONGE GIFT SHOP


On our first night, I asked the hotel clerk for a recommendation for dinner, and he told us his favorite place was Hellas. So to Hellas we went. Located across from the docks, this restaurant has been in business since 1970 – and for good reason. The service is fast and friendly, the prices are reasonable, and the food is to-die-for! They have a great selection of Greek wines from which to choose, and I picked out a red wine blended from a few different Greek varietals. It was a nice, medium-bodied red, with bright fruit and a little spice on the finish. It went well with the pastitsio (beef, lamb, and macaroni casserole) and the dolemates (stuffed grape leaves).


HELLAS DINING ROOM


The next morning we visited downtown, comprised primarily of antique shops, plus a winery. Unfortunately, we had walked the wrong way, so we'll have to catch it next time. We then headed back to the docks for lunch, and walked through the numerous shops. Every wine shop is willing to pour free samples. I tried the infamous white wine Retsina, and it was not as bad as I'd anticipated. The style is based on techniques that date back to classical times, when the stone jars known as amphorae were lined with pine resin in order to preserve their contents. Today, Retsina is a simple, dry white wine that has lumps of resin from the Aleppo Pine, infused in it during fermentation. It's best served ice-cold, in sherry-like quantities, maybe with a slice of spanokopita (spinach pie).


                    RETSINA


Being a lover of full-bodied red wine, it was hard for me to find a red I really liked. These wines are very old world, and are light- to medium-bodied, with not a lot of fruit. We went into a small wine shop in the shopping village, and I tried a wine called Metoxi Tsantali. This is a monastic wine from Mount Athos, made from a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon and Limnio. It was a 2003 vintage, and drinking quite well, with dark red cherry and plum notes, it had firm but approachable tannin on the finish. This was just what I was looking for!


                    METOXI


If you haven't visited Tarpon Springs yet, put it on your to-do list. The people are friendly, the food is fantastic, and the wine is plentiful. Don't forget to try the saganaki (flaming cheese). Opa!


 


Guest blogger Heather Hitson is the wine consultant at our Lady Lake store



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