One of the great truths of this life is that when you’re caught up in the whirlwind of events it isn’t easy to grasp the bigger picture. As a result, many comparisons are thought to be absurd, simply because some people don’t realise that even if the things compared are not alike, they nonetheless have a shared trajectory. However, if you want to understand this properly you need to take a step back—and maybe have a glass of wine too.
In the title, we have already proposed the paradox of comparing ‘King’ Federer with one of the classic wine producers of Greece. What the reader has to do is hold a glass of one of Strofilia’s fruity wines in his hand and, in his mind, the fact that style by itself can make history.
Roger Federer
There is a lot one could write about Roger Federer. He’s one of the sport’s most successful players, second on the list, with unbeaten records that he is expected to maintain for a long time to come. 308 weeks as No. 1 in the rankings and holder of 20 Grand Slams, the number of his trophies may be large, but the significant thing is that Federer has won them on all types of terrain (clay, tartan, grass). Many sports analysts and commentators believe that Federer has excelled because of his unique character. He is known for his modesty and his single-mindedness. Thus, on the one hand, he is always in great physical condition, but on the other hand, he never celebrates his victory wildly, like the ‘bad guys’ of tennis. Even in defeat, he doesn’t look for excuses, preferring to use it as an incentive to continuously improve his game.
Federer is a player who dominates the court with his unique playing style, one very different from that of his fellow players. In recent years, he has resisted the trend that wants tennis players to look like decathletes, and rely on strength and endurance to achieve victory. He admits that when he goes onto the court, he has not planned his strategy step by step; he follows the flow of the game, relying on his own instinct. His style of play is characterised by inspiration and creativity. It is this last trait—as well as his outstanding technique—that has placed him in the pantheon of the greatest tennis players of all time, as proved resoundingly by his successes in the last two years. After an operation on his knee in 2016, he succeeded in 2017 in winning two Grand Slams, and already in 2018, he has added a 20th trophy to his collection.
Strofilia
The Strofilia winery is one of the classic wineries from the golden age of Greek bottled wine, created a year before the birth of ‘King’ Federer. Based in Anavyssos, on the edge of Attica, Strofilia is a winery that demonstrates how love for the vineyard and wine must inevitably result in innovation. From the beginning, their aim was to produce high-quality wines, and then, alongside traditional local varieties, international ones were cultivated to support the former. Belief in historic vineyards pushed Strofilia to the nearest large vineyard to Attica, that of Nemea, but even there, their location was extreme. The highest point of the wine-growing area of Nemea PDO, in Asprokampos, is home to Strofilia’s second winery.
In recent years, Strofilia has taken a step forward as the new generation has taken up the reins and decided to prove once again that the record of a champion is being maintained. In our rapidly changing era, Greek wine is reluctant to give up the certainties of former years, but this is not true of Strofilia. With perseverance and a dedication to producing wines that have freshness and fruitiness at their core, the winery is once again relying mainly on Greek varieties, convinced of their potential. The new generation, however, has brought in new ideas from elsewhere and implemented them, without being bound by the past. For how else could one describe the bold step taken by Strofilia in adopting new packaging, designed with the global market in mind, with pleasing and colourful labels, as well as the use of the screw cap (Stelvin) for almost all its wines.
For those who still question the undoubted connection between the ‘King’ Federer and Strofilia, we must assume that either they haven’t seen the famous tennis player play or they haven’t tasted Strofilia wines. For the rest of us, it’s fairly certain that because of his age ‘King’ Federer will unfortunately not be able to continue dominating the tennis court for many more years, whereas Strofilia seems to be going through a second youth that augurs only good things—not only for its future but also for the content of our wine glasses.
