Luxe Beat Magazine April 2014 | Page 44

control of Greek Macedonia. Uprooted computers with ancient farming methods, Anestis sautééd chicken cutlets in during the 1922 transfer of populations he has noticed a good effect on his olive oil, caramelized onions and between the new republic of Turkey health as a farmer. Anestis states the peppers, and flamed all with his and Greece, Anestis’ grandfather grapes are healthier, and the wines do vineyard’s classic Greek white roditis. settled in Thessaloniki where A. not need as many added preservatives. He finished it off with the juice of a Babatzim & Co distillery thrived and expanded. couple lemons. Thin pork cutlets were Many of the estate’s 700 trees – fruit and similarly treated and added to a thick nuts dominate – as well as rose bushes bubbling tomato sauce. Pasta, feta Born out of Ottoman religious bans on serve as bellweathers. If they become ill cheese with herbs & olive oil, Greek wine, entrepreneurial Greek he takes aggressive action to eradicate salad, bread and wine completed winemakers found a distilled spirits the problem on these sympathetic plants lunch. loophole thus giving birth to raki and but preventative measures on the grape tsipouro. Raki was made from grape vines. This growing method for 1,870 mash and leaves, whereas tsipouro grape vines, all harvested by hand using only from the mash. The more refined local villagers, is more labor intensive. In distillation, ouzo, kept vineyards alive the past 14 years Anestis’ major for centuries of Ottoman rule and complaint has been his inability to became the spirit of a nation. The EU maintain his once daily swim. recognized ouzo and tsipouro as original Greek distillations in 1987, In the stone and glass walled restaurant, whereas raki was recognized as Turk chef Anestis Babatzimopoulos prepared since it was created under the our lunch of classic dishes while Ottoman Empire. A. Babatzim & Co’s expressing equal passion about using ouzo and tsipouro continue as national Greek products rather than the trend leaders. toward imports. He says word-of-mouth does more for his business, and those of Anestis built Domaine Anesti his neighbors, than any ad campaign. Babatzimopoulou in 1999 outside Yet he’s working on developing an Ossa yet his research into the viability association of the best producers, of an organic vineyard for Greek farmers and village markets to promote grapes started 30 years before. their regional honey, beef, cheese, Perhaps that’s why his Ossa label is produce and wine, and he wants t