Serifos, the island of somber mines and proud history, conceals beneath its soil iron and magnetite, dubbed Hercules’s stone as this iron oxide’s magnetism is seen as having superpowers. Magnetite was formed some 150 to 200 million years ago at the bottom of the ocean in the Sea of Tethys and its properties enrich the soil used to grow the Serifos vines that yield the island’s fine wine. Serifos’s alluring rocky landscape has also been used to grow onions, cereals and was home to a thriving partridge population. The translucent wine produced on the island is used in cooking to enhance the flavor of cured pork (louzes and syglina) and sausages along with various spices. A traditional spoon sweet is the sour wild cherry, while savory local dishes include chickpea stew with raisons and the local mizithra cheese matured in copper vats.
