Santorini Experience
Santorini is not only about the extraordinary landscape and the dramatic views. The island offers also unique experiences to try. We gathered 2+1 suggestions for you in order to keep them in mind during your next visit!
•OLIVE OIL TASTING
Olive Oil Experience is the result of a collaboration between the Panigyri gastro-taverna and Olive Epitome, an online shop sell- ing supreme-quality extra virgin olive oil from Greece. Olive oil tasting sessions are held in a beautifully kept garden with various vegetable patches, pomegranates, olive and lemon trees, plus a tall palm tree. A large table set under a bamboo shelter, where the olive oil tasting takes place, is the focal point. The experience includes tasting seven extra virgin olive oils from around Greece, all extracted from special olive varieties, such as Tsabidoelia, Kolovi, Adramatiani and Athinoelia. Participants then enjoy a menu of Greek gastro-tapas, including red shrimp with sour grapes, grapes and fava, all sprinkled with the olive oils for a captivating tasting experience that is also educational. Reservations can be made at www.olive-oil-experience.gr
•OENO P, THE NEW WINERY
Oeno P is the new project of Paris Sigalas, a pioneering figure of Santorini’s winemaking sector who has played a pivotal role in its global rise. With his Oeno P initiative, Sigalas returns to his roots and the old family kanava winery at Baxedes, where he began producing wine. The new project, a boutique winery, is located close to the northern edge of Koloumbos Beach, offering panoramic views of Ios, Amorgos and the Small Cyclades. Twenty impressive amphorae host wines from leading Santorini vineyards, while the vinification process is carried out with mild intervention and no filtering. Oeno P, which includes the initial of the winemaker’s first name, has just marketed its first wine, Tria Ampelia (Three Vineyards), a stylish Assyrtiko made with grapes from three prime vineyards, in Fira, Akrotiri and Megalochori. This wine is aged on its lees in the amphorae for 16 months. Oeno P also plans to market Nychteri and Mavrotragano wines. The winery may be visited, on prior arrangement.
•The Museum of Prehistoric Thera, showcasing the fascinating finds from the excavations at Akrotiri, has been upgraded considerably since last year, when it launched an exhibition titled “Thera Murals: The Treasure of the Prehistoric Aegean.” For the first time, the exhibition shows the murals in their place of origin, as they were presented in the rooms and buildings of the Bronze Age settlement, rather than stand-alone works of art. Among the richly detailed and colourful exhibits on display include a fisherman holding up his catch, a pair of young boys (or girls?) boxing, elegantly dressed women gathering saffron, and a flotilla of ships arriving at a port. More than 58 frescoes have been recovered and conserved since archaeological excavations at Akrotiri began in 1967, as well as thousands of fragments.
Did you know? Akrotiri was devastated by a huge volcanic eruption on the island around 1600 BC, sealing the town in meters-thick layers of pumice and ash, earning it the sobriquet the “Pompeii of the Aegean.” The cataclysmic event, known as the “Minoan eruption,” was one of the largest volcanic eruptions in the earth’s history. It not only entombed Akrotiri in ash but also destroyed towns and settlements on nearby islands, including Crete, with resulting earthquakes and tsunamis.
Our concierge remains always at your disposal for bookings and other arrangements in the island. Just contact us and express your wish!
Panagiotis Inglesis is the co-owner and General manager of Athina Luxury Suites, along with his wife Mrs.Artemis Argyrou. Together they had a vision to create one of the best boutique hotels in Santorini and today they continue their vision…Athina Luxury Suites is considered one of the top hotels on the island.