"There exists, at the far edge of the Peloponnese, a place where time folds upon itself — where ancient cobblestones lead you through centuries of history, and where the most celebrated wine of the Middle Ages was born."
Monemvasia is unlike anywhere else on earth. A fortified medieval town perched upon a colossal rock rising 300 metres above the Aegean, it can be entered only through a single gateway, reached by a slender road that follows the south shore of the rock across a narrow causeway. No cars pass through its ancient archway — only pedestrians, and the occasional cat, dog or mule wander its cobblestone alleys, past more than twenty churches, a handful of intimate inns, and the quiet facades of tiny stone houses. The rock itself commands sweeping views across the shipping lanes to the north, east, and south — a testament to the strategic brilliance that made Monemvasia, for centuries, one of the most vital trading centres of the Mediterranean.
It is here that the world's most storied wine was born.
A Name That Conquered the World
The great Arab geographer Idrisi was among the first to document this place, calling it Maliassa or Malbasa. Italian visitors and conquerors soon followed, and the name began appearing on maps as Malvasia. From there, the Venetians — those great maritime merchants who claimed much of Greece following the Fourth Crusade in 1204 — carried the wine across the known world. Merchants from Monemvasia traded it as Monemvasio or Monemvasia; the Venetians and Genoese sold it as Malvasia; the French knew it as Malvoisie; and the English called it Malmsey.
Its fame reached the highest circles of European culture. Shakespeare himself mentions the wine in Love's Labour's Lost, Henry IV Part 2, and King Richard III — where the ill-fated Duke of Clarence meets his end drowned in a butt of Malmsey. Kings, nobles, and wealthy merchants across the continent sought Malvasia to accompany their finest sweets, nuts, and fruits.
The Art of Making Malvasia
The original Monemvasia wine was sweet — crafted in a method already described by ancient authors. Grapes were laid in the sun to dry, their moisture slowly evaporating until the remaining juice became concentrated with natural sugars. The vineyards stretched across the mainland; the wine was fermented and stored within the rock itself. This tradition thrived until the mid-sixteenth century, when Ottoman rule brought it to an end, and the secret of Malvasia quietly slipped into history.
The Renaissance of a Legend
In September 1997, a visionary winemaker named George Tsibidis set out to resurrect this lost tradition. He founded Monemvasia Winery with a singular purpose: to rediscover the original Malvasia grape and bring it back to the very place that gave it its name. For years, he toured the local vineyards, working alongside researchers to identify over twenty indigenous varieties. Through painstaking study, four candidates emerged as the possible heirs of the original wine — Kydonitsa, Assyrtiko, Asproudi, and a variety simply called Monemvasia — reasoning, as he did, that the historic wine may well have been a masterful blend. His efforts were ultimately rewarded when Monemvasia-Malvasia received Protected Designation of Origin status for its sweet white and liquor wines made from sun-dried grapes.
An Aqualiving Experience
We invite you to discover Monemvasia from your villa. A private helicopter journey of approximately one hour will carry you from your Aqualiving retreat directly to this extraordinary place — for an afternoon of sightseeing, wine tasting, and leisurely hours on the secluded beaches nearby, some of which offer breathtaking views of the great rock rising from the sea.
Your personal concierge will arrange every detail of the journey. Simply let us know when you wish to go.