A Wine Lover’s Guide to Türkiye

Wine drinkers around the world may not realize that they owe thanks to Türkiye for their favorite beverage. The many civilizations and cultures that occupied Anatolia not only helped shape modern Türkiye, but were also responsible for organized viticulture, wine laws, advances in winemaking, and even the language we use to talk about wine today.

The early days of Türkiye’s wine history

Discoveries of wine residue in funerary and other unearthed vessels reveal that people enjoyed fermented grapes for a variety of uses long before written records. However, much of what we know about the history of wine in Türkiye comes from Hittite archives.

The Hittites ruled most of Anatolia between 1650-1200 BC, and their surviving writings give us great insight into ancient wine culture. While the Assyrians recorded the first laws around viticulture, the Hittite legal code uniquely categorized wine by age, sweetness, and dryness. Wine played such a significant role that some administrative positions in the government were named after it. Moreover, the Hittite language influenced how we talk about wine today. Their name for Anatolia was 'Wiyanawanda,' which translates to the 'land of the grapevine,' and their word for wine, 'wiyana,' is the root word for 'wine' adapted by languages around the world.

Following the Hittites, Assyrians, Phrygians, Phoenicians, Thracians, Lydians, Greeks, and Romans all continued viticulture in Türkiye, helping to spread the vine and shape wine into the beverage we know and love today.

Wine in modern Türkiye

During the Ottoman Empire, winemaking and wine drinking were largely restricted to the Christian population — primarily Greeks and Armenians — as well as to foreign visitors. The Ottomans, however, were more pragmatic than devout; they preferred to tax, rather than ban, wine and other alcoholic beverages.

Commercial viticulture nearly disappeared towards the end of the Empire and into the early days of the Turkish Republic. The devastation of phylloxera, coupled with the loss of the Empire's Christian population due to the 1923 population exchange between Türkiye and Greece, both halted winemaking and destroyed many vineyards. However, the industry didn't stay dormant for long. By the 1930s, individuals were traveling throughout Europe to study winemaking and bring back new vines, reinvigorating the wine industry.

Today, there are approximately 185 registered wineries across Türkiye, producing about 8 million liters of wine. Current government policies make this a particularly challenging endeavor. High fees, difficulties in obtaining licenses, frequent and surprise inspections by government agencies, incredibly high taxes, and a ban on all alcohol advertising since 2013 create a difficult path for producers. Those who choose to navigate this red tape do it for the love of winemaking.

The modern Turkish wine landscape is a mosaic of climates, grapes, and people just waiting to be explored.

Endless varieties

Türkiye is not only the sixth-largest grape-producing country in the world, it also boasts more grape varieties than any other nation. The Tekirdağ Viticulture Research Institute has recorded over 1,400 native grape varieties that are largely endemic to the country. This treasure of indigenous grapes contributes to the industry's uniqueness and offers a wealth of flavors just waiting to be explored.

However, this wealth of indigenous grapes is only now being fully realized thanks to a new generation of winemakers dedicated to their preservation. The last 20 years have seen a renaissance in native grape cultivation and wine production due largely to wineries such as Tomurcukbağ, Paşaeli, Vinkara, Gordias, Likya, Gelveri, Tasheli, Akberg, Heraki, and Yaban Kolektif.

Paşaeli founder Seyit Karagözoğlu is dedicated to recovering lost grapes. "I was a newcomer to the winemaking scene in Türkiye," he explains. "I thought and expected that the existing local winemakers in Thrace would do something about rescuing the Kolorko variety. Surely, they all had the means and the potential to do so. It took me a few years to realize that no one could be bothered. Unless someone stepped in and did something, the variety would be extinct forever, and that someone had to be me."

Turkish wine regions (and where to drink)

Türkiye has eight distinct wine regions and six wine routes, but no formal appellation system. While some similarities can be found across the country, each region's unique climates, soils, and elevations produce an intriguing diversity of wines.

Thrace

Bordering Greece and Bulgaria, Turkish Thrace is characterized by cold, snowy winters and hot, dry summers, with diverse soils from the Strandja Massif. While international grapes have traditionally dominated the region, the local Papazkarası grape has been gaining ground — both literally and figuratively.

One of Türkiye’s wine routes, the Trakya Bağ Yolu runs through Thrace with many member wineries offering onsite restaurants and even hotels to facilitate tourism, like family-run Arda.

Owned and operated by the Saç family, the winery is a major champion of the local Papazkarası grape. Winemaker Şeniz Saç explains her dedication: "My long-time passion has been exploring every possible expression of Papazkarası. So far, I believe we've done well with its white, rosé, and red versions, but the goal is always to improve. My real dream, because I love it myself, is to make a Papazkarası sparkling wine."

While in Thrace, plan to visit Arda, Saranta, Vino Dessera, Prius, Chamlija, Gürbüz, and Chateau Nuzun among others!

Marmara

The Marmara wine region spans both Türkiye’s European side — between Thrace and the Gallipoli Peninsula — and the Anatolian towns of Bursa and Mudanya. Vineyards in this region are situated at lower elevations and benefit from a warmer, coastal climate, characterized by warm to hot, humid summers and cold, wet winters.

Along the coast on the European side of the Marmara, old vineyards continue to produce native white grape varieties such as Kolorko and Yapıncak. However, the real excitement in the region comes from Avşa, a small island in the Sea of Marmara. Its decomposed granite soils are home to Türkiye’s first-ever geographically indicated wine: Avşa Adakarası, championed by the leading winery behind the grape, Büyülübağ.

Avsa isn’t exactly convenient to reach, but luckily, there are plenty of Marmara wineries on the mainland to visit, including Uçmakdere, Chateau Kalpak and Yusta Bursa.

Aegean

The Aegean has the largest concentration of vineyards and wineries in Türkiye. It encompasses a wide range of terroirs, from the Gallipoli Peninsula on the European side and the low-lying fertile vineyards around Urla to the higher elevation (average 900 m) plains of Denizli.

A number of well-known and rare grapes have emerged from the Aegean, including Bornova Misketi, Çakal, Çal Karası, Karasakız, Kolorko, Osmanca, Sıdalan, and Sultaniye, to name a few. This diverse region is also home to all the remaining wine routes: Urla Bağ Yolu, İç Ege Bağ Rotası, Güney İzmir, Çal Bağ Yolu, and the newest, Lidya Antik Bağ Rotası.

Wineries in the Aegean region are often widely spread out, even within the designated wine routes, with the exception of the Urla Bağ Yolu. Planning a trip to this region, therefore, requires some careful thought about the types of wine you want to taste and other activities you might want to enjoy. A significant advantage is that many of the wineries are close to traditional tourist destinations, making it easy to combine wine tasting with sightseeing.

If you are planning to visit Ephesus, don’t miss the chance to stop in at 7Bilgeler or Akberg, both a short drive from the ancient city. 

Heading to Pamukkale and Aphrodisias? About an hour’s drive away is the Çal Bağ Yolu. If you venture that way, the best winery there is Kuzubağ. With its determination to raise the status of the district, focus on native grapes, and female-centric business, this young winery is offering some of the best price-conscious wines in the country. 

If beach tourism is more your thing, try a few of the wineries around Urla. Those with the best wine experiences are Ayda Bağları & Şarapçılık, HUS, Mozaik Şarapçılık, and Urla Şarapçılık.

Black Sea

More well-known for tea and hazelnuts than for wine, the temperate climate and alluvial soils of the Black Sea nonetheless produce native grapes like Narince, Dişi Mercan and Merzifon Karası. Few wineries are based here, even fewer open to visitors, aside from 502 Vineyards in Amasya.

Central Anatolia

Stretching from the Turkish capital, Ankara, to Cappadocia’s famous fairy chimneys, the Central Anatolia wine region sits, as its name suggests, in the middle of Türkiye. With generally high elevations between 930 and 1400 meters and a semi-arid, cold continental climate, the region is rich with native grapes. The reigning varieties are the red Kalecik Karası and the white Emir. For an authentic experience, head to Kalecik, a town outside Ankara, to taste wines from Kalecik Karası at Tomurcukbağ. This winery is credited with bringing the grape back from the brink of extinction, making it one of the most popular varieties in Türkiye today. 

Cappadocia offers quite a few opportunities to taste regional wines in very different settings. Kocabağ in Uçhisar is conveniently located near many tourist activities. Nearby S’Narin offers a beautiful river-side setting for wine sipping. A 90-minute drive away takes you to a truly unique experience at Gelveri. Owners Udo and Hacer Hirsch live in a 300-year-old cave house and make small amounts of amphora wine with rare grapes.

Mediterranean 

Ali Ay from Tasheli winery says, "making wine is easy — after the first 100 years." And while he’s only in his 70s, he knows this to be true, especially in the Mediterranean region, where octogenarian vineyards grow around ancient wine presses carved into the limestone high in the Taurus Mountains.

While this region includes a relatively small number of wineries spread out along the long Mediterranean coast, the wines coming from here demonstrate the region's immense potential. Many vineyards sit high above the sea, between 500 and 3,000 meters in the marine fossil-dotted limestone of the Taurus Mountains. These elevations ensure significant day-to-night temperature shifts, which are perfect for the maturation of local grapes such as Acıkara, Fersun, Gök, Patkara, and Tilki Kuyruğu. At the same time, sea breezes help keep lower-lying vineyards, where grapes like Barburi are grown, cool and pest-free. 

The best wineries to visit in the Mediterranean are Tasheli near Mersin, Likya in Elmalı, and Antioche in Hatay.

Eastern Anatolia

What Eastern Anatolia lacks in winery numbers, it makes up for in fascinating geography, which is ripe for diverse grape-growing microclimates. Its varied landscape includes plains, plateaus, massifs, and dormant volcanoes at the highest average altitude of all Türkiye’s regions (2,200 meters). Combined with long, cold, and snowy winters, the main native red grapes that grow here — Kösetevek, Öküzgözü, and Erciş Karası — produce fruity, medium-bodied wines with a silky texture. The only winery truly open to visitors in the region is Eskibağlar, located outside Elazığ. It offers not only a tasting experience but also a hotel nestled into the hills just steps from its vineyards.

Southeast Anatolia

One of the smallest regions in terms of wine production, but one of the longest continuously producing is Southeast Anatolia. Bordered by Iraq and Syria, this is one of the most conservative Muslim areas of the country, but it’s also home to the remnants of the ancient Assyrian people. Historically, Assyrians were one of the groups instrumental in early wine production. As early adopters of Christianity, wine continued to play a major role in their culture. 

Hot and semi-arid, one of Türkiye’s key grapes, Boğazkere, comes from one of Southeast Anatolia’s sub-regions, while several up-and-coming grapes like Kerküş, Mazrona, and Bilbizeki have emerged, thanks to the commercial Assyrian wineries Shiluh and Midin. 

Visiting Turkish Wineries

Interested in visiting a few wineries in Türkiye? Always make a reservation. Most of these wineries are open to visitors but many are small operations, so it’s wise to double check that they’re open if nothing else. Not all wineries offer vineyard or winery tours. Many offer only a tasting (all for a fee). Turkish wineries are open to visitors year-round but generally the best months to visit the country are between April and June and between September and October.