A Wine Diary

This was my first ever visit to what is considered the oldest wine shop in Belgrade, located in the city centre and named simply “Vinoteka” (well, it was the first one!). I was expecting a lot, but offered very little, most of the foreign wines are available in the super markets, nothing new there, but there were wines from a few domestic wineries, one of which I haven’t noticed anywhere else - Emporio Stojakovic. There were two reds, a Cabernet Sauvignon and a Syrah. Knowing that Syrah doesn’t really grow well around here, I decided to check it out.

This is a very soft and dry syrah, the label says it contains 20% Merlot, but it tastes more like 80% Merlot and 20% Syrah. This might be caused by the fact that Syrah doesn’t grow well throughout the Balkans, or at least doesn’t produce the spiciness that it’s known for in other regions. Apart from the initial disappointment of not getting a full bodied wine, and expecting slightly more for it’s price, this syrah is generally not bad and does go very well with food. Would not recommend on it’s own.

Emporio Stojakovic produces a “Barik Cabernet” which sounds good, deep red colored and full bodied, will try it definitely when I get the chance.

Rating 6/10
Retailer: Vinoteka, Makedonska 24
Price: 710 RSD (9 euro)
Producer: Emporio, Avalska 308, 11232 Beograd, Phone: 011/4897242, email: stojakovic at beotel dot net

Technorati Tags: Syrah, Emporio, Serbian Wine

This is a Montenegrin premium red wine. The famous French variety has preserved its best properties in the vineyards around Podgorica but it has also gained gentleness and subtleties thanks to the sun, stones, and vines and the contrast of Mediterranean and continental climate.

This is a very nice Merlot, best enjoyed with some Montenegrin pršut (think prosciutto or Parma ham but better) and lighter cheese as a starter. If you are in Montenegro, take a trip to the Lov?en mountain for some breathtaking views. On your way down, stop in the village of Njeguši, where exceptional pršut and cheese is made and sold by the producers themselves, the villagers.

Price: RSD 250 (€3.5)
Score: 7/10

Ždrepčeva Krv (The Foal’s Blood) was made three decades ago by the Čoka winery in the northern Serbian province of Banat, and was one of the most popular and consumed red wines in former Yugoslavia. The color and specially the thickness and smoothness of this wine present a strong, sweet wine with a dark ruby color. Being a sweet wine, it’s nice on it’s own or as a dessert wine. However, the producer does suggest trying it out with game meals.

Trivia: This wine was one of the wines that has been served in British Palace for Prince Charlie’s wedding.

Price: 150 RSD (€2)
Score: 6/10

This is, without a doubt, the best Sauvignon Blanc I’ve ever tried. It’s unusually golden coloured for this variety, with a rich nose and a full, beautiful honey-nut taste, with hints of quince. Very enjoyable to drink on it’s own or with smoked cheese, fish, smoked fish, lamb.

This is a must try if you’re in Serbia, and one that will often be drunk in my home.

Rating: 9/10
Price: 350 RSD (€4.5)

Terra Lazarica is a special wine program of the largest Serbian winery, Rubin. They call them “Crown Wines”, as they are the best wines produced by this winery. The winery is located in Kruševac, which was the medieval capital of Serbia, therefore the name has a dual character. This wine program consists of four wines, named after the grape varieties: Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc. They are all of exceptional quality, certainly the best Serbian wines I’ve tried. They all come with something of a local twist, are very unique, and extremely enjoyable to drink.

Technorati Tags: Serbian Wine, Terra Lazarica

Plavac is the best Dalmatian red grape, usually resulting in wines of body, strength and ageability. Dingač is a vineyard designation on Pelješac’s steep southern slopes. Pelješac is a peninsula, close to Dubrovnik. This is a robust dry red with a nice oaky smell. Very light in color, easy for drinking (think Merlot), pleasantly dry. 12% alcohol.

Dingač wines are highly estimeed and generally expensive. Look for the following producers: Bura, Kiridžija, Matuško, Miličić, Skaramuča. The wine I had was produced by Badel, a large winery.

Rating 7/10
Price: 400 RSD (€5)
Retailer: Mercator, Belgrade

Technorati Tags: Plavac, Croatian Wines, Croatia

I recently relocated to Serbia. The choice of wines here is not as good as in Ireland (it’s actually quite bad), but there is an abundance of wines from the region, specifically from the ex-Yugoslavian states of Montenegro, Macedonia, Croatia and Slovenia. This is a region with great wine making potential since the climate is perfect for wine growing. There are some interesting local wines around and I will try to present you the best ones.

If you know of any good wines from this area that you think I should check out I’d be delighted to hear from you.

Technorati Tags: Serbian Wines, Croatian Wines, Slovenian Wine, Balkan Wines

Named after the town of Tokaj in the northeast corner of Hungary, it’s a wine with a long history - Tokaji has been celebrated for at least 400 years. Indeed, it was the first wine to be intentionally made from botrytised (’nobly’ rotten) grapes.

I tried it once before at a wine tasting and it was magnificent, this time it didn’t quite fit my taste buds, I was expecting more. It does have a beautyful nose, a honey taste, dry.

Price: €35.00 0.5l bottle
Rating: 8/10

This beauty left me quite speachless. I felt a similar excitement when I first tried a Royal Tokaji a few months back, so it looks like there is a thing going on between me and nice dessert wines. The Rabaud-Promis has a magnificent pallette, a mixture of cantaloupe, peaches and honey with a taste that is a mixture of these and a slight scent of mint. Actually, I smelt another thing with every sniff, tasted something different with every sip. Always perfect. Drunk on it’s own, I have a feeling anything else would spoil the magic.

Price: €17.99 half bottle
Rating: 10/10

Technorati Tags: Sauternes, Sweet Wine, Tokaji

This is a beauty. Someone (smithco) left a comment on Cork’d about the 2001 vintage of the same wine, “This is as good as a red wine gets” and I fully agree. This was the wine my wife and myself chose as the best one among the many of the wines we tried at the O’Briens Wine Fair and decided to buy a case of it. Since then, we’ve been enjoying it occasionally and the last bottle is about to end, still providing us with joy and causing respect and admiration.

The wine was rated 4/5 by decanter.com and the following comment was left: “Rich nose, concentrated deep fruit. Rich, concentrated palate. Big wine, smooth. Drink 2007-10″. Well, we obviously couldn’t resist drinking it all in 2006. A truely great wine, highly recommended. This is the kind of wine I currently consider as perfect.

Price: €13.99
Score: 10/10
Typical Grape Composition: Grenache/Syrah

There is a very nice article about the Rasteau village, “A Small Town in France” written by Dave McIntyre. Here is a short excerpt related specifically at this village, but the whole article is inspiring and well worth a read.

My fantasy town is Rasteau. You may have heard of it, then again maybe not. It bears a minor distinction in the hierarchy of the appellation controllee laws in that its name can appear on a wine label above the generic appellation “Côtes du Rhône-Villages.” Eighteen other villages share that modest distinction, sort of an official, “Hey, not bad!” from the Parisian bureaucracy. This places them below the 14 crus (such as Châteuneuf-du-Pape and Vacqueyras) that stand alone as village names, but above anonymous Côtes du Rhône-Villages and Côtes du Rhône.

To learn more about the Rasteau village and see some pictures, visit provenceweb.fr

Technorati Tags: Rasteau, Grenache