Retsina

Retsina is a traditional Greek white (and occasionally rosé) wine flavoured with the resin of the Aleppo pine, which gives it a distinctive piney, turpentine-and-citrus aroma found in no other wine. It is overwhelmingly made from the white Savatiano grape, often rounded out with Roditis and Assyrtiko, and is centred on Attica around Athens and the neighbouring regions of Boeotia and Euboea. The resinous style is a survival of an ancient practice — pine pitch was once used to seal porous clay amphorae — that outlived its purpose and became a national taste. Light, dry, brisk and best served well chilled, Retsina is an everyday taverna wine built to cut through olive oil, garlic and the bold flavours of Greek meze. The European Union protects the name as a Greek (and southern Cypriot) speciality.