The Best Wineries in Santorini

1. Estate Argyros — best for understanding Santorini Assyrtiko

Best for: first-time wine enthusiasts, Assyrtiko, vineyard education Location: Episkopi Gonia Choose it if: the wine itself matters more than the sunset view

Estate Argyros is the strongest choice for visitors who want to understand why Santorini wine is different, not merely taste a few glasses.

The estate has deep roots on the island and works extensively with Assyrtiko and mature Santorini vineyards. Its visitor experiences are structured and educational: you walk through the vineyard and production area before sitting down to compare wines built on indigenous grapes.

The introductory experience includes four wines and is designed around the particularities of Santorini’s vineyards. A longer tasting goes deeper, with six wines and local food pairings.

That makes Argyros an excellent first winery of the day. Once you understand the volcanic soils, old vines, kouloura training and the different expressions of Assyrtiko here, everything you taste later makes more sense.

Why visit Estate Argyros?

• Excellent introduction to Assyrtiko
• Strong vineyard and terroir focus
• Structured tastings rather than casual pours
• Chance to compare dry wines with Vinsanto
• The right choice if you actually want to learn

Possible downside

It is not the winery to choose for a dramatic caldera sunset. The appeal is the wine, the vineyards and the quality of the tasting.

Best experience

If you drink wine beyond the basics, take one of the longer tastings rather than the shortest introduction. Argyros is a fixed first stop on the three-cellar tasting tour — one of the few routes that guarantees it rather than rotating it.

2. Domaine Sigalas — best winery near Oia

Best for: Assyrtiko, food pairing, visitors staying in Oia Location: Baxes, near Oia Choose it if: you want serious wine without crossing the island

Domaine Sigalas is one of Santorini’s best-known estates, and the obvious candidate if you are based around Oia.

The setting is nothing like the cliff-edge tasting terraces most visitors picture. You sit close to the vineyards, and the focus is the wine and the food.

The range is unusually useful for seeing how far Assyrtiko can go. Alongside classic Santorini Assyrtiko, Sigalas makes barrel-aged versions, single-vineyard expressions, Nykteri, Aidani, Mavrotragano and Vinsanto.

Advance booking is required, so this is not a spontaneous stop while wandering Oia.

Why visit Domaine Sigalas?

• One of the strongest Assyrtiko line-ups on the island
• Convenient for Oia
• A vineyard setting rather than a viewpoint
• Food and wine experiences available
• Particularly good if you already enjoy wine

Possible downside

If a caldera panorama is your main goal, this is not it. Come for the wines.

Best experience

Choose a tasting that compares several expressions of Assyrtiko rather than a flight of unrelated wines. Sigalas appears on the sunset route of the three-cellar tasting tour and as one of the rotating first stops on the Small-Group Sunset Wine Tour with Santo Winery (4.92 stars, 886 reviews, from $209) — on both it alternates with Estate Argyros, so confirm the day’s route if Sigalas specifically is why you booked.

3. Gavalas Winery — best traditional family winery

Best for: indigenous grapes, tradition, smaller-scale atmosphere Location: Megalochori Choose it if: you want a personal contrast to the island’s big tasting centres

Gavalas is the pick for travellers who want something still closely tied to Santorini’s traditional wine culture.

The family has a long winemaking history in Megalochori, and the winery pairs old stone cellars with modern production. Tastings happen in the courtyard or the old cellar, which makes the visit far more intimate than the largest Santorini wineries.

Gavalas is particularly interesting because it does not focus only on Assyrtiko. Alongside the better-known native grapes it works with rare local varieties including Katsano and Voudomato.

Why visit Gavalas?

• Genuine family-winery atmosphere
• Excellent for indigenous grapes beyond Assyrtiko
• Historic cellar setting
• Smaller and more personal than Santo Wines
• Easy to combine with a walk around Megalochori

Possible downside

You are not coming for a huge caldera terrace. This is about the cellar, the wines and the family history.

Best experience

Enthusiasts should take the tasting focused on rare and limited wines rather than the basic introductory flight. Gavalas is one of the rotating middle stops on the three-cellar tasting tour, alternating with Gaia and Anhydrous.

4. Hatzidakis Winery — best for serious wine enthusiasts

Best for: experienced wine drinkers, old-vine Assyrtiko, focused tastings Location: Pyrgos Choose it if: you care more about the glass than the photograph

Hatzidakis is one of the names that comes up when Greek wine professionals talk seriously about Santorini.

Founded in 1997 by Haridimos Hatzidakis, it built its reputation on low-intervention winemaking, organically farmed vineyards and distinctive expressions of native varieties. The estate continues under the Hatzidakis family.

The experience is deliberately less casual than the island’s large visitor centres — a winery to reserve on purpose rather than drop into between sightseeing stops. The cellar itself is part of the appeal: not a polished panoramic terrace but a cave-like production space.

Why visit Hatzidakis?

• Strong reputation among serious Greek-wine drinkers
• Old-vine and site-specific Assyrtiko
• Intimate, wine-first experience
• Excellent contrast with the commercial tasting centres
• Interesting for repeat visitors who know the basics already

Possible downside

Not an easy spontaneous visit. Reservations matter, the scale is small, and the focus is firmly on wine rather than views.

Best experience

Book as far ahead as you can in season and choose a tasting that includes older or single-vineyard wines. If you would rather not arrange it yourself, the Wine Tour with Sunset in Oia (4.48 stars, 221 reviews, from $127) opens at Hatzidakis before running north — the lowest-rated tour we list, and worth reading our breakdown before booking, because it is a sightseeing day with wine in it rather than a wine tour.

5. Santo Wines — best for first-time visitors and caldera views

Best for: first-time visitors, variety, sunset atmosphere, views Location: Pyrgos Choose it if: you want one easy visit combining wine and scenery

Santo Wines is the best-known winery stop on the island.

It is the wine-producing arm of the Union of Santorini Cooperatives and represents growers from across Santorini, so it operates at a very different scale from a family estate. For visitors that scale has real advantages: you can compare young Assyrtiko, Nykteri, reserve wines and Vinsanto without planning several separate visits.

Then there is the view. The tasting terraces face across the caldera towards the volcano, which makes Santo one of the most visually impressive places on the island to sit with a glass.

Why visit Santo Wines?

• Outstanding caldera panorama
• Broad introduction to Santorini wine
• Multiple tasting options
• Restaurant and winery tours available
• Easy choice for first-time visitors
• Open beyond the short peak-season window of some smaller cellars

Possible downside

It is popular for a reason, and that means crowds. Sunset can feel more like a major visitor attraction than an intimate tasting.

Best experience

Go earlier if wine is the priority; reserve late afternoon if the view is. Santo is the guaranteed final stop on the Small-Group Sunset Wine Tour with Santo Winery, and our full Santo Wines guide covers tasting prices, booking and how to get there.

6. Venetsanos Winery — best combination of history and caldera views

Best for: architecture, caldera views, couples, sunset Location: Megalochori Choose it if: you want a scenic winery with more historical character

Venetsanos is the other strong caldera-view winery, and its story is very different from Santo’s.

Built in 1947, it was the first industrial winery on Santorini. Its unusual multi-level design used gravity to move wine through production at a time when energy was scarce. Today you can tour the historic building and taste indigenous-grape wines on the terrace above the caldera.

One useful detail: the sunset terrace and the tasting terrace are not the same experience. The sunset area is set up for glasses and bottles rather than a structured tasting, so check what you are actually booking.

Why visit Venetsanos?

• Excellent caldera views
• Unusual winery architecture
• Genuinely interesting industrial history
• Guided tour available
• Good for couples and first-time visitors
• Convenient to Megalochori

Possible downside

Visitors who want high-level wine analysis may find a specialist producer more rewarding.

Best experience

Take the winery tour and tasting earlier, then stay for a glass at sunset if the schedule allows. Venetsanos is a fixed stop on both routes of the Wine Tasting Tour to 3 Wineries with Transfer (4.73 stars, 480 reviews, from $145) — the cheapest dedicated tasting tour we list, and the reliable way to reach it without a car.

7. Vassaltis Vineyards — best modern winery experience

Best for: contemporary design, premium tastings, food pairing Location: Vourvoulos Choose it if: you want a polished modern alternative to the historic cellars

Vassaltis is one of the newer names in Santorini wine, and that is exactly what makes it interesting. Where others lean on history, it combines the island’s traditional grapes and techniques with a modern visitor experience.

Tasting options run from current-release flights with small food pairings to winery tours, premium single-vineyard tastings and a full degustation menu.

Why visit Vassaltis?

• Modern, stylish winery
• Strong emphasis on terroir-driven native grapes
• Single-vineyard and limited wines in the premium tastings
• Good food pairing options
• Tour covers vines, production area and cellar

Possible downside

If you want an old cave cellar or centuries of family history, Gavalas, Hatzidakis or Art Space will suit you better.

Best experience

The signature tasting for enthusiasts; the tour-and-wine experience for first-timers who want to understand production. Note: no tour in our catalogue currently includes Vassaltis, so this one needs your own transport and a direct booking.

8. Artemis Karamolegos — best for wine and food together

Best for: food pairing, Assyrtiko, relaxed lunch Location: Exo Gonia Choose it if: you want the winery visit to double as a meal

Artemis Karamolegos is the answer when your group has mixed priorities. One person wants to examine different expressions of Assyrtiko; another simply wants a good lunch with local wine. This winery handles both.

The tasting room offers guided flights, winery tours and food-and-wine pairings, while the adjacent Aroma Avlis restaurant gives the visit a real culinary dimension. The producer also works with single-vineyard Assyrtiko, including wines from very old vines, so it is far more than a convenient lunch stop.

Why visit Artemis Karamolegos?

• Excellent balance of wine and gastronomy
• Strong focus on Assyrtiko
• Guided tours and structured tastings
• Restaurant on site
• Useful for groups with different levels of wine interest
• Central for combining with other wineries

Possible downside

If you are fitting three wineries into a half-day, the food turns this into a much longer stop.

Best experience

Make it your lunch winery rather than squeezing it between two quick tastings. The Small Group Tour of 3 Local Wineries (4.9 stars, from $214) runs Estate Argyros → Artemis Karamolegos → Art Space, which is the most direct route to it — though with only 26 reviews it is a much thinner record than the big three-cellar tours, so treat that rating as indicative rather than settled.

9. GAIA Wines — best for an unusual east-coast setting

Best for: Assyrtiko, wine history, a different side of Santorini Location: east coast, between Kamari and Monolithos Choose it if: you want to escape the caldera-side circuit

GAIA gives you a completely different picture of Santorini wine. The winery occupies a restored early-20th-century industrial building that once made tomato paste, and it sits on the eastern side of the island near the sea rather than above the caldera.

GAIA is strongly associated with Assyrtiko and makes both classic and more experimental versions, including wild-fermented expressions. Its Santorini portfolio includes Vinsanto.

Why visit GAIA?

• Distinctive historic industrial building
• Strong Assyrtiko credentials
• East-coast location away from the main circuit
• Interesting mix of tradition and experimentation
• Good for repeat Santorini visitors

Possible downside

Do not come expecting a volcano-and-caldera sunset.

Best experience

Pair GAIA with the nearby Exo Gonia wineries to keep the driving down. It is one of the rotating stops on both the three-cellar tasting tour and the small-group sunset tour, so it is reachable on a tour — but on both it alternates with other estates rather than being guaranteed.

10. Art Space Winery — best for wine, caves and art

Best for: atmosphere, art lovers, historic winery spaces Location: Exo Gonia Choose it if: you want something more eccentric than a tasting room

Art Space is hard to compare directly with the rest of this list, because the wine is only part of it. The property occupies old winery spaces carved into volcanic rock; the historic cellars and distilling areas have been restored as an art gallery and museum, while production continues alongside.

The attraction is not a luxury terrace or a slick tasting room. It is the combination of wine, cave architecture, old agricultural equipment and contemporary art.

Why visit Art Space?

• Highly distinctive setting
• Historic cave winery spaces
• Art gallery and museum alongside the tasting
• Small-scale atmosphere
• Easy to combine with the other Exo Gonia wineries

Possible downside

If your goal is to taste the broadest range of benchmark Santorini wines, Estate Argyros, Sigalas or Gavalas will serve you better.

Best experience

Come with time to explore the property rather than treating it as a 30-minute stop. Art Space is one of the two possible opening estates on the Guided Tour to 3 Wineries with Wine Tastings (4.78 stars, 724 reviews, from $174), and a guaranteed stop on the Guided Wineries Private Tour (4.99 stars from 43 reviews, from $197), which is quoted per vehicle.

Which Santorini winery is best for you?

There is no winery that wins every category.

Best for serious wine lovers

Estate Argyros, Hatzidakis or Domaine Sigalas. These are the names to prioritise if you drink wine regularly and want Santorini beyond an introductory flight.

Best for first-time visitors

Santo Wines. Broad range, accessible format, caldera setting.

Best traditional family winery

Gavalas. The history, the cellar and the indigenous-grape focus that most people picture when they imagine a Greek winery visit.

Best for sunset

Santo Wines or Venetsanos. Both dramatic, but different: Santo is larger with a broader tasting operation, Venetsanos adds historic architecture and a dedicated sunset terrace.

Best near Oia

Domaine Sigalas. Its Baxes location saves you crossing the island.

Best near Fira

Anhydrous Cellar Door, which is within walking distance of central Fira and combines tasting with food. It did not make the main ten because this list prioritises destination wineries, but it is the best practical choice without a car — and it is one of the rotating stops on the three-cellar tasting tour.

Best for food

Artemis Karamolegos, with Aroma Avlis next door. Vassaltis if you prefer a contemporary degustation format.

Best for something unusual

Art Space. Few winery visits combine contemporary art, volcanic cave spaces, museum elements and active production.

Santo Wines vs Venetsanos: which has the better view?

Both are excellent, so choose on the type of visit.

Choose Santo Wines if you want a larger range of wines, a fuller visitor centre, restaurant options, and the classic first-time Santorini experience.

Choose Venetsanos if you want historic architecture, a smaller scale, a winery tour with an industrial-history angle, and a dedicated sunset-drinking terrace.

For pure wine depth, neither has to be your only winery.

Estate Argyros vs Domaine Sigalas

The better comparison for serious wine drinkers.

Choose Estate Argyros for a highly educational introduction to Santorini’s vineyards, in a central location that pairs easily with other producers.

Choose Domaine Sigalas if you are staying around Oia, or want to explore a broad range of Assyrtiko expressions in a vineyard setting with strong food pairing.

If you have the time, visiting both is far from redundant.

Should you visit wineries independently or book a wine tour?

Independent visits work well when you have one specific winery in mind. They get complicated when you want three, because you are coordinating reservation times, transport, tasting duration, lunch, who drives, and the geographic order of the stops.

A tour solves most of that and lets everyone taste. It also fills the gaps between stops — the most valuable part of a Santorini wine day is not memorising tasting notes, it is understanding why the vineyards look the way they do and how different producers interpret the same grape. Our worth-it guide puts real numbers against both routes, and every tour we rate is compared on price and format.

When independent visits make more sense

• you want only one winery;
• you plan to spend several hours over lunch;
• you have visited Santorini wineries before;
• you want a specific appointment at Hatzidakis, Argyros or Sigalas;
• you have a designated driver.

Do Santorini wineries require reservations?

Policies differ, but the rule is simple: book ahead if the winery matters to you.

Reservations matter most:

• from June through September;
• for sunset;
• for private or premium tastings;
• at smaller wineries;
• for food-pairing experiences;
• if your itinerary is tight.

Domaine Sigalas requires advance booking, and smaller specialists such as Hatzidakis work far better with a pre-arranged appointment. Larger wineries may take walk-ins when there is space, but building a wine day on that assumption is risky. Even where walk-ins work, a reservation usually gets you a better experience.

How much does wine tasting cost in Santorini?

There is no single useful figure, because the experiences vary enormously. A short introductory tasting is relatively inexpensive; a premium tasting with rare wines, older vintages or multi-course food costs several times more.

Current examples:

• Estate Argyros lists an introductory four-wine experience at €25 per adult and a longer six-wine tasting with food at €40.
• Santo Wines offers several flights at different price levels.
• Venetsanos separates winery tours, wine tastings and sunset reservations.
• Premium food-and-wine experiences at the modern wineries cost considerably more than a basic flight.

Always check the winery’s own booking page before your visit — Santorini tasting menus change, and third-party articles stay online long after the prices in them have expired. For guided tours rather than cellar-door tastings, our wine tour prices guide breaks down what each bracket buys.

Can you walk between wineries in Santorini?

Generally, do not plan a wine day around walking.

Some producers sit fairly close together, particularly around Exo Gonia, but the roads are not pleasant for pedestrians and summer heat makes short distances feel much longer.

The sensible options are an organised tour, a taxi or private driver, or a rental car with a designated driver. If you are staying in Fira and want to avoid transport entirely, Anhydrous Cellar Door is the easiest tasting to reach on foot.

Best area of Santorini for winery hopping

Exo Gonia and the central-east area

One of the most convenient areas for combining wineries. You can build a route around Artemis Karamolegos, Art Space and GAIA without crossing the island repeatedly.

Pyrgos

Useful for Santo Wines and Hatzidakis, with Pyrgos village itself worth adding.

Megalochori

Gavalas and Venetsanos make an interesting pairing precisely because the experiences are opposites: intimate traditional cellar versus panoramic historic industrial winery.

Oia and the north

Domaine Sigalas is the obvious anchor if you are based in Oia.

What wines should you taste in Santorini?

Do not spend the day tasting near-identical young Assyrtikos. A better line-up:

1. Young Assyrtiko — crisp, dry and saline
2. Single-vineyard or aged Assyrtiko — more concentrated and complex
3. Nykteri — traditionally richer and more powerful
4. Mavrotragano — a native red worth seeking out
5. Aidani — aromatic white variety
6. Vinsanto — the island’s naturally sweet wine

If a winery works with rare local grapes such as Katsano or Voudomato, try them. You are unlikely to meet them again once you leave the island.

For the background, read our complete guide to Assyrtiko and our guide to Vinsanto.

Best time of year for Santorini wineries

April and May

One of the nicest windows. The island is active without the pressure of peak summer, and spring vineyard visits are particularly pleasant.

June to August

Everything is open, but reservations matter more. Heat, traffic and visitor numbers make independent winery hopping less enjoyable.

September and October

Excellent for wine-focused travel. The summer peak eases while wineries and vineyards are still working — Santorini’s harvest is unusually early, generally starting in the first half of August.

Winter

Some wineries keep welcoming visitors, others reduce hours or close their tourism operation seasonally. Outside the main season, never assume a winery is open because Google or an old blog post lists hours — contact it directly. Our best time guide goes month by month.

A good three-winery itinerary for first-time visitors

If I were building a balanced first Santorini wine day, I would avoid three wineries that offer essentially the same experience.

Stop 1 — Estate Argyros

Start with vineyard context and a structured introduction to Assyrtiko.

Stop 2 — Gavalas

Move to a smaller family winery and taste less familiar indigenous varieties.

Stop 3 — Santo Wines or Venetsanos

Finish with a caldera view and a more relaxed final glass.

That gives you terroir + tradition + scenery rather than three versions of the same tasting room.

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the best wineries in Santorini?

For serious wine tasting, start with Estate Argyros, Domaine Sigalas, Gavalas and Hatzidakis. Santo Wines and Venetsanos are the strongest for caldera views, while Artemis Karamolegos and Vassaltis stand out for food-and-wine experiences.

What is the most famous winery in Santorini?

Santo Wines, because of its large wine tourism centre above Pyrgos and its panoramic caldera terraces. It is the winery most sunset tours finish at.

Which Santorini winery has the best sunset view?

Santo Wines and Venetsanos are the two strongest choices. Santo is larger and busier; Venetsanos has a dedicated sunset terrace and more architectural character.

What is the best winery near Oia?

Domaine Sigalas in Baxes is the obvious destination winery close to Oia. It requires advance booking.

What is the best winery near Fira?

Anhydrous Cellar Door, which is roughly a short walk from central Fira and offers wine tastings, food pairings and guided experiences.

Which winery is best for Assyrtiko?

Estate Argyros, Domaine Sigalas, Hatzidakis and Vassaltis are all strong. The most useful approach is to taste Assyrtiko at more than one producer rather than settling on a single estate.

Can you visit Santorini wineries without a tour?

Yes. Most wineries take independent visitors, though reservations may be required or strongly recommended. A tour becomes more convenient once you want several producers and would rather not drive.

How many wineries should I visit in Santorini?

Two or three in a half day suits most visitors. More than that makes the day rushed and the wines hard to tell apart.

Do Santorini wineries have food?

Some do. Santo Wines has substantial food options, Artemis Karamolegos has the Aroma Avlis restaurant, and Vassaltis and Domaine Sigalas run food-focused tastings. Smaller wineries may offer only tasting bites or cheese.

Do you need to book Santorini wineries?

For the best-known wineries and peak summer dates, yes. Some take walk-ins, but premium tastings, food experiences, sunset visits and smaller wineries should always be booked ahead.

Final verdict

The best Santorini winery depends far more on what you want from the visit than on any universal ranking.

For the strongest wine education, start with Estate Argyros. For a smaller traditional producer, Gavalas. Serious enthusiasts should look hard at Hatzidakis and Domaine Sigalas. If scenery matters as much as wine, Santo Wines and Venetsanos deliver the classic caldera experience. For wine with a proper meal, Artemis Karamolegos and Vassaltis.

The best wine day usually combines contrasting wineries rather than trying to identify one winner. Santorini’s wine culture makes most sense when you see how differently producers work with the same volcanic landscape and the same remarkable grape.