Retsina is a Greek wine made with white or rosé wine flavored with pine resin. It is an acquired taste and pairs well with strong, savory foods. It can be difficult to find outside of Greece.
Retsina is a unique wine product made almost exclusively in Greece. It is made with a base of white or rosé wine flavored with pine resin. The wine is quite pungent and not to everyone’s taste. However, the Greeks have been making and drinking it for over three thousand years, and people often find it most enjoyable when paired with Greek foods. Retsina also varies widely in quality, and an inferior product may taste suspiciously like turpentine. Consulting the staff of a Greek wine shop can be the best way to find a good wine.
The name for retsina comes from a Latin word, resin. The official explanation of the drink has its roots in early winemaking practices. Lacking airtight containers for fermentation, many early white wines turned sour from exposure to oxygen. To avoid this problem, winemakers covered their wine jugs in pine pitch, the same material used to waterproof boats. The field effectively sealed the containers so the wine would not spoil, and consumers developed a taste for the resulting resinous wine.
Only whites and rosés are used to make retsina, as red wines have a pungent flavor and are mouth-watering. The wine must be served extremely cold and in large, open glasses. Lipped glasses will tend to trap the resinous aroma, rather than dissipate it like a wide mouth glass will. This is an undesirable outcome, even for die-hard Greeks, because the concentrated flavor can be quite intense.
Retsina pairs best with strong, spicy and savory foods such as those served as appetizers or meze, in Greece. Many mezes integrate pickled, salted or garlic ingredients, which counteract the strong flavor of the retsina very favorably. Wine could also be paired with spicy cuisines, such as Indian or Chinese food, but shouldn’t be eaten with subtle foods, such as many Japanese and French dishes.
To find retsina outside of Greece, consumers will likely have to go to a specialty import shop. It is an unusual item and many stores do not carry it. Consumers may also consider ordering it from an online retailer, if they live in an area where they can accept shipments of alcohol. It is important to remember that retsina is a highly acquired taste and not all drinkers will find it to their liking.
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