The olive oil and wine tour | Made In Crete

If you’re staying in the Heraklion area and keen to explore Cretan olive oil and wines, then Pierre Graff is your guy.

The founder of Made in Crete, Pierre is a worldly former chef who speaks Greek, French and English. Pierre’s passion for Crete and its beautiful produce is palpable and contagious. All in all, he is simply a joy to be around! We found ourselves completely mesmerised as he guided us through the production and tasting of olive oil and the various Cretan wine varietals.

Made in Crete offers tours crafted for a maximum of 8 people so you can have a truly personal and unique experience.

The olive oil and wine tour.

We loved being taken on an olive oil and wine tour. Our day started by being picked up from our hotel where we travelled to Koronekes, a family estate and a traditional olive mill in the Protected Designation of Origin Archanes in Heraklion. The olive mill produces oils exclusively from the 2000 trees surrounding the mill. We loved learning about all of the differences in olive oil production techniques and were also enlightened about the difference between cold pressed vs cold extracted olive oil. An important difference when it comes to quality!

Our visit to the mill concluded with a wonderful tasting of the various extra virgin olive oils and flavoured oils produced which were stunning in their quality.

Our next stop was Kaloni, where we stopped at the award winning Digenakis Winery and tasted our way through 6 different wines which we enjoyed over traditional Cretan snacks including cheese, cherry tomatoes and olives. Pierre guided us through the wines and highlighted unique characteristics specific to the Cretan varietals.

Continuing our tasting tour through Crete, we enjoyed a delightful Cretan luncheon at Bakaliko in Archanes where owner George spoiled us with a 5 course degustation paired with matching Cretan wines. It was a truly immersive way to put all we had learned throughout the day into practice in the most enjoyable manner. The food was absolutely stunning. Grounded in Cretan flavours but executed with modern techniques, sophistication and elegance. Our favourites included the fava tart made with goat cream cheese, pepper spread and toasted cherry tomatoes. The dolmades were similarly delicious – beautiful bulgur wrapped vine leaves finished with lemon and mind tzatziki. Other delights included the graviera saganaki which boasted a beautifully balanced flavour. For mains, the mustard and herb marinated pork chops were a show stopper – wonderfully tender and served atop creamy and perfectly seasoned mashed potatoes. Dessert time at Bakaliko continued to please with the lemon tart. Think crumbly almond pastry filled with fresh lemon curd. Simply amazing. Each wine selected to pair with the dishes was similarly delightful. We loved how George took us through the tasting notes for each wine and provided us with a brief history of each producer.

After the lunch, we took a stroll through the picturesque village of Archanes which has a rich history in wine culture. A unique experience for food and wine lovers, this village was truly charming.

Find out more about Made in Crete here.

Made in Crete. Heraklion , Crete

Mobile: 697 562 68 30

Email: contact@madeincrete.com