Yiannis Tselepos invited me for talk and food to his estate in Rizes, very close to Tripoli, on the 19th of May. It was a hot, but extremly windy day, I could not go faster than 120 km/h on the motorway. After I arrived at the winery, Yiannis took more than an hour to show me his vineyards. The altitude is about 800 m, and there are a total of 50 ha, plus another 30 ha of forest. On the photo on the left the city of Tripoli can be seen in the background. I turned around in any direction, and all I could see was the vast territory of the Tselepos estate. It it an amazing sight! Up to 25 employees work in the vineyards, and all work is done by hand. For example, weed is pulled out by hand only - quite a task for such a large area. Grape varieties are Moschofilero, Gewurztraminer, Chardonnay, newly planted Riesling, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon. The soil consists of schist. Tselepos also owns 8.5 ha of the Driopi Estate in Nemea, where Agiorgitiko is planted. Included in the vineyards in Rizes is a beautifully built private church with hand-painted pictures of wine related biblical themes. In addition, a mill from 1780 was restored, this is yet another showpiece. Yiannis told me that he wanted to show me everything so that I get a feeling for the man behind the label, he does not usually show people around. I was very impressed, the love for even the smallest detail cannot be missed. He lives and breathes wine and certainly is extremly passionate. We then drove to Tripoli and had a light lunch in the oldest taverna in town (1933). Food was perfect, oven baked anchovies, beet and wild mountain herbs. We drove back to his estate and had coffee there. He is also currently building a new winery plus cellar from scratch. Work should be completed this year. As a summary, this is a very serious estate where the passion for wine is matched by the meticulous work in the vineyards. 
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