📍 Paphos

Paphos is a district in south-western Cyprus on the Mediterranean coast and one of the island's main wine areas. According to legend, the goddess Aphrodite was born from sea foam near Paphos. The town is on the UNESCO list for its ancient mosaics and tombs. In the north of the district rise the Troodos Mountains, and vineyards lie on their western slopes at up to a thousand metres, where it is cooler than on the coast.

The main local grapes are Xynisteri, a white with high acidity that makes fresh wines, and Maratheftiko, a red that has been saved from extinction in recent decades. In the past, Mavro was the most commonly grown grape in Cyprus, a red giving simple wines. Today winemakers release high-quality wines from old vines.

Paphos includes the zones of Laona-Akamas and Vouni Panayia-Ambelitis. Laona-Akamas lies on slopes in the western part of the Troodos, near the Akamas peninsula. The district's wines are red, white and rosé.

For comparison with its neighbours: to the east lies Limassol, from which the sweet wine Commandaria comes, and to the north the Troodos Mountains.