Title – Name
Manousakis Estate
Scope / Sector / Industry
Wine tourism
Country / Region
Greece, Crete
Why is it good practice?
The Manousakis Estate is a good practice wine tourism unit, as its main objective is to operate in harmony with the environment and the community. Through the organic cultivation of its vineyards, the promotion of wine and Cretan gastronomy, as well as its social awareness, it tries to harmonize with the principles of sustainable development and bring a positive economic, social and environmental impact to its region.
How is it applied?
The Manousakis Estate, with its vineyards and winery are located in the hills just outside the village of Vatolakkos in Chania, Crete. In 1993, the family planted its first vineyards, on an area of just 20 hectares, with French varieties. Today, the vineyards reach an area of 135 acres, while since 2010 the family has been trying to plant local grape varieties, such as the white Cretan variety Vilana, Agiorgitiko and Assyrtiko.
The need of the Manousakis family to highlight the local wine varieties as well as the rich gastronomy of Crete, led them to plan and implement wine tourism experiences that aim to introduce the visitor to the gastronomy tradition, culture and nature of Crete. The experiences offered by the Manousakis Estate are the following:
Wine Tastings and Tours
Implementation of guided tours in the winery with the aim of introducing the visitor to the winemaking process and the history of the winery. The tour is accompanied by a tasting of the Estate’s wines accompanied by traditional Cretan dishes from the tavern run by the family.
Transfer service and vineyard tours
The Manousakis family, in collaboration with a tourist office, designed two complete wine tourism experiences in order to show visitors the entire process that is followed in order for the grape to turn into wine. The experiences pick up the visitor from their accommodation, bound for the village of Vatolakkos where the winery is located. There, the winery’s tasting team takes over the winery tour and wine tasting accompanied by nuts and olive oil. In addition, it is possible to have a meal at the Estate’s restaurant.
Wine Dinner Under the Stars
The Estate, in collaboration with a tourist office, designed a special nocturnal wine experience under the stars. The tour includes a specific dinner and wine tasting.
Jewelry making workshop
This specific experience includes the manufacture of ancient Greek-inspired souvenir jewelry accompanied by wine and Cretan delicacies. This workshop introduces the visitor to the world of goldsmithing and learning a jewelry technique used by the ancient Greeks.
Restaurant
In the Manousakis Estate there is a restaurant, where the visitor can enjoy local Cretan dishes under olive and orange trees.
In addition to the services and experiences of the winery, another important reason why the Manousakis Estate is a good practice wine tourism business is because it makes a significant effort to provide services in terms of sustainability. For the family, sensitivity to the environment and its protection is important and necessary, for this reason they place importance on the sustainable development of their vineyards, through the use of strict earth-friendly practices. Below, there are some indicative sustainability practices:
- The application of organic farming in order to respect nature and the environment.
- The use of mainly manual labor for weeding, leaf thinning, stem thinning and harvesting.
- Personalized cultivation for the many small parcels of the vineyard for uniform ripening of the fruits and production of excellent quality wines.
- Each vine is treated with individual attention and care to produce healthy fruit, with a stable balance of sugars, acidity and natural ripening, with minimal interference in the balance of nature and the ecology of our planet.
In addition to its environmental consciousness, the Manousakis family attaches great importance to the value of the community and social responsibility. In this context and being very aware of issues of disability, children and adults, it launched the “RespectLife” campaign in 2016, the purpose of which is to raise awareness of the problems faced by people with mobility problems when trying to travel to Chania and Greece in general. This campaign led to the creation of the short film “My Brother” which was released in 2018 and became very noticeable in just 3 days (it reached 9 million views). The purpose of the family is to contribute in its own way to the education of the new generation about the importance of considering all people in the community.
Also, as part of its social responsibility, the family has created a range of products (oil and sea salt) and part of the proceeds from their sale is allocated to the Hellenic Society for the Protection and Rehabilitation of Disabled Persons (ELEPAP) of Chania. It is worth mentioning that the packaging of the two products is handmade by a local ceramist.
Where is it applied?
The Manousakis Estate is addressed to visitors who wish to have a special wine tourism experience close to Cretan culture and tradition, in a winery that respects the environment and the people of the community.
When did it applied?
The Manousakis Estate started its operation in 1993.
Results
The Manousakis Estate has won many awards and distinctions for its wines. However, it has also received distinctions for its tourism services. Specifically, from 2014 until today, it has been awarded the Trip Advisors Excellence Award.
Other Information
The official website of the Manousakis Estate is: https://www.manousakiswinery.com/
