Samian wine is internationally recognized, with distinctions and awards in many labels, while the wineries of the island are of particular interest to the wine-loving visitor. Wine tourism is a special form of tourism that involves the provision of front-desk services, tours, hospitality and catering services in areas which are functionally integrated with winemaking or wine-producing facilities, e.g., vineyards. These services are offered in combination with activities related to viticulture and wine production.

In other words, it is a journey to the world of wine that visitors enjoy while combining it with their holidays on Samos. The purpose of wine tourism is to bring visitors in contact with wine production. Visits to vineyards where the famous grape variety of Samos, Muscat, is cultivated, and to wineries where the wine is produced, let people know how the wine reaches the bottle and finally the table. The tourist follows the process and tastes the wines.

On Samos there are significant opportunities and a lot of potential for the development of wine tourism. We constantly see vineyards being utilized and organized wineries established according to modern standards that can accommodate visitors. Many of them can be visited. In this way, they further promote the wine production process to the wine-loving visitors of the island.  At the same time, local travel tourism businesses offer wine-related routes, combining it with wine tasting experiences.

The aim in all this is to create a new special market, which will include tourists with a common interest, their love for Samian wine, for which they wish to travel to the island and learn new things. It is therefore a special form of alternative tourism that can give additional benefits to the island of Samos. In addition to the revenue generated by the tourist flow, it can also lead to an increase in wine sales with an increase in exports to new markets.

EU policy on quality labels protects and promotes the name of specific products in order to highlight their unique characteristics, which are linked to their geographical origin as well as to traditional technology – know-how.

Geographical indications establish intellectual property rights for specific products whose properties are specifically linked to the area of production.
Geographical indications include:

• PDO — Protected Designation of Origin (food and wine)
• PGI — Protected Geographical Indication (food and wine)
• GI — Geographical Indication (alcoholic beverages and aromatized wines).

The EU system of geographical indications protects the names of products that come from specific regions and have special properties or have a reputation associated with the production area. The differences between PDOs and PGIs are mainly related to the quantity of raw materials of the product that must come from the region or to the extent to which the production process must take place within the specific region. GIs are specific to alcoholic beverages and aromatized wines.

UWC Samos was founded in 1934 with the enactment of Law 6085 following the mass movement of Samos vine growers aiming to ensure the complete control of the vinification of the Muscat grapes of Samos and the movement of its wines, without the mediation of the wine merchants of that time.

The lifting of “Compulsory law” of the Union of Winemaking Agricultural Cooperatives of Samos was imposed by Joint Ministerial Decision 902/51563/27-04-2016. According to it, the Union was transformed into a Primary Organization and was renamed to “United Winemaking Agricultural Cooperative of Samos”. This means that the members of the UWC are no longer the 24 primary cooperatives but the approximately 2,200 vine growers of Samos. This decision brought about changes in both the structure and the operation of UWC Samos. The initial members (winegrowers) were not forced to participate in the new Cooperative, but could choose other marketing solutions for their production.

On the other hand, the new winegrowers did not automatically become members of the Cooperative (as was the case until then) but they submitted an application for admission which was examined by UWC Samos and their acceptance or not, depended on the will of the members of the Cooperative as expressed through the Board of Directors and the General Assembly. As the United Winemaking Agricultural Cooperative of Samos was established, all the members of the primary cooperatives who were active until then were automatically considered members of the new cooperative, with the exception of those who requested their deletion. The producer who has chosen to participate – based on the voted articles of association – is obliged to deliver to the Cooperative all of his production with the exception of a small part, for own consumption. An exception is also provided for some cases of licensed cottage industry.

The Cooperative, for its part, is obliged to receive the entire production of its members. The producer’s commitment upon entry is valid for 6 years with the exception of force majeure. In cases of deletion, the producer does not have the right to apply for readmission until three years have elapsed. On the other hand, the lifting of “Compulsory law” and the change of the existing regime so far led to the liberalization of the vinification and trade of Samian wine. This historic decision enabled every Samian citizen to produce, vinify and trade their own wine.

As a result, several private state-of-the-art wineries were established on Samos. They uniquely highlighted the Samian vineyard aiming at high quality and aesthetic wines, combining technology and know-how with the traditional approach to wine. At the same time, however, they contributed significantly to the recognition and advertising of Samian wine in the local and international wine market. So far, 7 wine producers are active on Samos and it is very likely that there will be more in the future.

Contemporary Samian winemaking comprises of UWC Samos and a significant number of small and medium-sized winemaking enterprises. Specifically, Samian wine industry consists of 6 wineries, 1 vineyard and 1 cooperative that produce many different wine labels. It is noted that several companies in the industry, such as Metaxa LIKNON, produce other alcoholic beverages too, such as cognac. These winemaking companies control significant shares of the domestic bottled wine market and distribute their products through wholesalers or by direct sales to Supermarkets and restaurants, covering the whole country through these extensive distribution networks. Additionally, some companies produce bulk and bottled wine which is available in the local market of the island, while others produce bottled wine of “limited production” with special characteristics, the distribution of which is usually carried out through specialized companies.

In recent years, the quality and reputation of bottled Samian wines has greatly improved, a fact that is confirmed by the continuous awards won by both UWC Samos and the wineries in international competitions. Many companies have made modernization investments, which are sometimes part of subsidized programs.

In addition, export orientation of Samos winemaking enterprises is strong. The main markets for Samian wines are France, Germany, Switzerland, China, Canada, etc.