Winemaker
Evangelos Tsantalis
- Discipline
- Winemaker
- Based in
- Thessaloniki, Greece
i. Biography
Evangelos Tsantalis arrived at Metoxi Chromitsa in 1971 and worked with a site that had been left untended. The vineyards were neglected, but the place still held the structure and memory of earlier cultivation. Into that condition, he brought his family’s expertise in restoring vineyards: a practice grounded in care, patience, and the long view of viticulture. At Metoxi Chromitsa, Mount Athos, the work was as much restoration as production, with the aim of bringing the estate back into active winegrowing. Among the wines tied to that work, Kormilitsa carries the clearest weight. Made at the Metochion of St. Panteleimon on Mount Athos, the red wine reflects both its setting and the discipline of its making. Its selection by the Kremlin for official meals also marks its reach beyond the estate. In Tsantalis’s hands, the restoration of the vineyard was not an end in itself; it was the condition that allowed wines like Kormilitsa to emerge with purpose.
The Essentials - Primary craft: Family expertise in restoring vineyards. - Workplace: Metoxi Chromitsa, Mount Athos. - Restoration point: Metoxi Chromitsa, 1971. - Signature wine: Kormilitsa. - Named vintage: Xinomavro Naoussa 2016.
Signature
Evangelos's signature wines include Kormilitsa, Metohi 2000, Wine of Alexander the Great Cabernet Sauvignon, and Xinomavro Naoussa 2016. Read together, they show a cellar shaped by renewal and by attention to the estate’s character. Kormilitsa remains the anchor, while Metohi 2000, Wine of Alexander the Great Cabernet Sauvignon, and Xinomavro Naoussa 2016 extend the range without shifting the core concern: tending neglected vineyards until they could again produce wines worthy of notice.
FAQ Who is Evangelos Tsantalis? He came to Metoxi Chromitsa in 1971 and offered his family’s expertise to bring the vineyards back. What is Evangelos Tsantalis known for? His work is tied to restoring untended vineyards at Metoxi Chromitsa and to wines including Kormilitsa and Xinomavro Naoussa 2016. Where does Evangelos Tsantalis work? He is associated with Metoxi Chromitsa and the Metochion of St. Panteleimon on Mount Athos.
