Sigalas Nychteri Grand Reserve White 2012

The 2011 Nychteri (in Sigalas' transliteration) was in used oak and on the lees for 30 months. It comes in at 15% alcohol and 5.5 grams per liter of residual sugar. The Nychteri styles tend to be more alcoholic, bigger, riper and more powerful. This is all that, and it is brilliant. Rich and delicious, it is a table wine that has almost a dessert wine feel to it, but without the sugar. The slightly elevated sugar level here gives it just a touch of extra fruitiness to blend with the oak. Don't misunderstand--if it has a slightly sweet edge in its youth, it's not and is not intended to be a dessert wine; it merely seems more luscious. The slightly elevated sugar level works very well here with the oak and prevents this from seeming stern and brooding (compare, the oaked Santorini reviewed this issue). As time goes on and this sheds some baby fat, I suspect it will seem much drier, too, and its wonderful structure will be more evident. It is otherwise the regular Santorini on steroids (or the oaked Santorini with a more luscious demeanor). It is mouth-coating with an intense and gripping finish as it warms and airs out. There were admittedly just some hints of alcohol around the edges, but some three days later it seemed rather better in that regard than worse, so that's a good sign. This is a high personality bottling that will be delicious on its own or pair beautifully with many foods. It should age very well, but let's take that in stages. Note: This is the same wine as the last submission (the Grande Reserve), but in current labeling, it omits the "Grande Reserve" designation. I'm told this is just a timing issue on inspections; the wine has not been declassified.