Xynisteri (also spelled xinisteri; el, ξυνιστέρι) is an indigenous white

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus ''Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years ago, ...

grown on

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is geo ...

. According to some estimates, 33% of Cypriot vineyards, on the south slopes of the Troodos mountain range are planted with this grape variety, a fact that makes Xynisteri the main white grape grown of Cyprus. Its clusters and berries are of medium size while it is known for its durability against wine diseases. It is used in the production of several local (mainly white)

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

s. Xynisteri is blended with

Mavro Mavro ( el, μαύρο, meaning "black") is an indigenous red grape cultivated on the island of Cyprus. The grape takes its name from its dark colour. The Italian ampelographer, Count Giuseppe di Rovasenda refers to it in 1877 as Cipro Nero '' ...

grapes for the production of the

Commandaria Commandaria (also called Commanderia and Coumadarka; el, κουμανδαρία, and Cypriot Greek κουμανταρκά) is an amber-coloured sweet dessert wine made in the Commandaria region of Cyprus on the foothills of the Troödos Mountains ...

, a well-known Cypriot

dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal ...

and it is also used for the production of the local spirit

Zivania Zivania or zivana ( el, ζιβανία, ζιβάνα Turkish: Zivaniya) is a Cypriot pomace brandy produced from the distillation of a mixture of grape pomace and local dry wines made from Xynisteri and Mavro grapes. The name of zivania is deriv ...

References

{{reflist, 2 White wine grape varieties Grape varieties of Cyprus Dessert wine