The Tasting Day for the commemorative collector's wine dedicated to Alexis Zorbas was successfully completed on Saturday, January 24, 2026, at the Nikos Kazantzakis Museum, as part of the anniversary collectible wine competition marking the 80th anniversary of the first publication of the novel Life and Times of Alexis Zorbas.

In a creative challenge of global originality, eleven Cretan wineries presented red wines inspired by the personality of Alexis Zorbas, organoleptically capturing four key characteristics of his personality: Authentic, multidimensional, unconventional, lively.

The evaluation process took place in a ceremonial atmosphere, with a blind tasting by a four-member committee of renowned wine experts: Konstantinos Lazarakis MW, Apostolos Plachouras DipWSET, Yro Koliaoudaki DipWSET, and Pr. Mondher Bouzayen (INP-ENSA Toulouse). The tasting was also attended by wine lovers and representatives of the wineries participating in the competition, who tasted the samples without knowing their identity.

The winner of the competition was the Idaia Winery, based in Venetato, Heraklion, which stood out in the committee's overall score.

The name and label of the collectible wine will be officially presented at the Wine and Culture Festival on February 7 and 8, 2026, at the Old Power Station in Archanes. There, the public will have the opportunity to taste and purchase the winning wine from the Nikos Kazantzakis Museum stand. The label on each bottle of the Nikos Kazantzakis Museum's anniversary collector's wine will be numbered and unique.

The Tasting Day was broadcast live and free of charge for wine lovers everywhere, and will soon be available on the Museum's YouTube channel here.

The event was attended by the Mayor of Archanes-Asterousia, Manolis Kokosalis.

Warm thanks to all those who supported this unique tasting experience in person and online. Special thanks to the Cretan wineries that participated in the competition and honored Tasting Day with their presence.

Stelios Rousohatzakis, the Museum's appointed advisor, is the inspiration behind the original idea for the wine competition and was responsible for organizing and coordinating the Tasting Day. The wine service for the tasting was provided by the Oinofilos wine cellar. Galatea Pirunaki was responsible for interpreting. Vangelis Apostolou was in charge of sound, and Lefteris Piperakis was responsible for the live broadcast.

More information about the anniversary collectible wine competition and its contributors can be found at kazantzaki.gr.

Photo Credit: Nikos Kazantzakis Museum

Editor Marinos Skolarikos 28January 2026