Aristotelis ke Anthoula started as a family pastime.
Having migrated from rural greece in the early 80s, Aristotelis and Anthoula started making their own wine in a garage in the beachside suburbs of Sydney.
From the outset, the aim was to create delicious natural wine with no additives to keep the wines healthy and pure. Overly polished, manufactured wine felt contrived to them – they were more interested in finding something vibrant and alive.
There it existed, like so many other home wineries across Australia, quietly making a few barrels, year after year, from hand picked grapes procured from the "box trade" at the western Sydney markets.
Many years later, knowing it had been a lifelong dream to have their own natural winery, their son, Tony Zafirakos, convinced them to give it a try. In 2016, aristotelis ke anthoula was born in their modest garage in bowral.
In the meantime, Tony set about furthering his knowledge of natural wine making. Travelling to Europe every winter, he spent every spare moment working the harvest with natural wine producers in Italy, Germany and Greece, honing his skills to understand this unique approach to wine.
There is no telling what the impact of this Mediterranean immigrant wine community has been on the greater wine industry of Australia. Aristotelis Ke Anthoula explores the experience of one of these families and looks to tell this story.
joined by tony's partner, Maddison, in 2020, the winery has gone from strength to strength, earning a strong reputation for producing the highest quality natural wine.
Having long outgrown its original home in the family garage, Aristotelis Ke Anthoula has now established its permanent home on the stunning Far South Coast of NSW.
Over the years, the number of barrels and amphorae has grown, the press is a little bigger, but not a lot else has changed. The lo-fi approach to wine has been retained, and it is evident in the wines themselves – a slice of the village in every bottle.
Aristotelis Ke Anthoula is the experience of moving to Australia, living here, growing up here, learning and creating a community here. It's a lived history of growing up in coastal Australia, from us to you.
But how do I say it?
Let's face it, foreign names can be hard to get right. Especially foreign wine names.
The great thing about Greek names is that they're phonetic – each syllable is said exactly how it looks! Breaking it up might even help. ARISTO-TELIS KE ANTHOULA.