Enter amphorae - ancient clay vessels which are still used in modern winemaking. They're neutral and porous, allowing the wine to breathe with minimum intervention as they do not impart tannin or flavour as oak does, and are generally associated with skin-contact and orange wines. Being used more and more, and gaining popularity for this lack of intervention, amphorae are on the rise with those who use natural, organic and biodynamic winemaking techniques.
In the Tejo wine region of Portugal, Ode Winery is one such winemaker. “We’re embracing traditional methods and using those, but making sure we’re doing it in a very precise and clean way, the way we would do any conventional fermentation. Whether we’re using stone lagares or fermenting in stainless steel, we have the same attention to detail, and the amphora wine is a really good example of that,” says Jim Canwood, wine director at Ode. “Using this ancient technique carefully and precisely results in a really modern style of wine.”
The winery recently partnered with Izabela Kamińska, wine educator and author, to create an amphora white made from Arinto, called Space-Odyssey. The wine is exclusive to the Polish market, as Canwood adds Poland is “one of those markets in Europe that is continuing to grow quite healthily. It seemed like a good idea at the time and it’s been quite successful”.
On creating wines that are specific to particular markets, Canwood adds it “helps to give a connection to the market as they have something individual. It doesn’t have to be in large volumes, it can be fun and different”.
Why Poland? Kamińska notes the country has seen an increasing interest in New World wines over the past 10 years, with “changing palettes and young people drinking more wine of a different style to older generations”. Kamińska adds: “The new generation entered the wine world knowing about natural wines and Pet-Nats. They want minimal intervention wines and there’s a big fashion trend in Poland for sparkling wines.
“When I was making this wine, I knew I wanted to make it in the most natural way possible and use the amphora. I also knew that I wanted to make totally clear wine. Tejo wines weren’t always my style but the first thing I noticed with Ode is their wines are different. They are lighter and there is a different image of Tejo. I was really delighted when I tried their wines so I told them about the idea to make something, and it turns out they were also looking to enter the Polish wine market,” Kamińska continues.
Leaning into the trend in Poland for sparkling wine, Ode and Kamińska have further plans to continue their partnership, with the next expression set to be a Pet-Nat released next year.
