Wineries - Fancy sampling some great Slovene wine? Find out where and when
Slovenian Wines - An Overview
Locally produced wine is of a good standard and is slowly making an impact on the world stage as Slovene wines try to find their position in the marketplace.

There are over 40,000 wineries in Slovenia and they are mostly located in 3 main wine growing areas: Primorska to the west, Posavje to the south east and Podravje to the east.

Whites account for 75% of the output in Slovenia and some experts say that a select few are now "world class". The reds are also emerging as Slovene winemakers try to diversify by experimenting with both varieties.

The steep terrain of most vineyards encourages the using of manual harvesting over mechanical. Historically aged in large Slovenian wooden casks, the trend has been to use small and varying sizes of French and Slovenian oak barrels. All wines must be submitted for chemical analysis and tastings prior to being released on the market. After testing the wines are assigned a quality level according to the ZGP who allocate a wine quality:
Namizno vino - Table wine; Deželno vino PGO - Country wine; Kakovostno ZGP - Quality wine; Vrhunsko vino ZGP - Premium quality wine

In the wine growing areas, families are fiercely proud of their product and like nothing better than sharing a bottle over dinner with friends.
Slovenian Wines - Primorska Wine Region

Located in the west of the country from the Italian border inwards, the Primorska wine region is the most internationally recognised region in Slovenia. Winegrowers are heavily influenced by winemaking processes from their cousins across the border in Friuli, in particular the return to natural farming with the use of only minimal chemicals.

The area is divided into 4 main sub-regions where both white and red wine are produced. They are:

Goriška Brda - Tucked away in a small corner on the Italian border, the Goriška Brda region is Slovenia's answer to Tuscany. Gently rolling hills layered with terraced rows of vines combine with the sweet aroma of fruit from the orchards below to make Goriška Brda an ideal spot to lay your hat down for a few days in the warmer months. It has also been virtually frost free in recent years, another plus for serious winemakers.

Slowly growing in reputation, the area is best known for its Rebula White and Merlot-Cabernet blends. It also produces quantities of Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rebula, Refošk, Pinot Gris, Pinot Noir and Friulano.

Koper - Near the Adriatic Coast, the Koper region is the warmest wine region in Slovenia. The most abundantly grown grape are the Refošk and Malvazija. New cellars are opening all the time showing the regions growing popularity.

Kras - East of Trieste, the cave plateau region of Slovenia is best known for Teran. This highly acidic red wine is made from Refošk.

Vipava - the valley east of Nova Gorica specialises in crisp white wines from the Pinela and Zelen grape variety. The warm air blows in from the Adriatic and hail can be a big problem for growers here and on some ocassions, whole crops can be damaged.

Other varieties found in Primorska are: Barbera, Beli Pinot, Cabernet Franc, Cipro, Glera, Klarnica, Laski Rizling, Malocrn, Rumeni Muskat, Syrah and Vitovska Grganja.

Slovenian Wines - Posavje Wine Region

Posavje in the south east towards Croatia produces slightly more reds than white and is also divided into several districts. They are:

Bizeljsko-Brezice - Known for its sparkling wine and acidic whites.

Dolenjska - Famous locally for its light pink Cvicek blend of red (Zametovka) and white (Kraljevina).

Bela Krajina - Known for its reds made from Modra Frankinja and Rumeni Muskat.

Other varieties found in Posavje include: Beli Pinot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Gamay, Modri Pinot, Nueburger, Ranina, Rdeca Zlahtnina, Renski Rizling, Sentlovrenka, Sipon, Sivi Pinot, Traminec and Zweigelt.

Slovenian Wines - Podravje Wine Region

Podravje in the east hugging Croatia and Hungary is the largest wine region in Slovenia. Famous for its sparkling and dessert wines, the region is subdivided into 7 districts:

The Radgona-Kapela district was the first Slovenia wine region to produce sparkling Penina.

The Ljutomer-Ormož district includes the village of Jeruzalem which is known for white wine made from Diše?i Traminec and Ranina.

Radgona-Kapela-Maribor produces some of the best examples of Podravje wine.

Haloze district is improving in quality.

Prekmurje

Srednje Slovenske Gorice

Šmarje-Virštanj

The last 4 districts have small production that is consumed locally. Nearly 97% of the wine made in the Podravje region is white wine.
Other grape varieties found in Podravje include Chasselas, Gamay, Kerner, Kraljevina, Muškat Otonel, Portugalka, Ranfol, Rizvanec, Rumeni Muškat, Zeleni Silvanec, Zlahtnina and Zweigelt.

Coming: Wine Tours and best Wine Routes to follow.
Coming: Hottest Cellars to visit around Slovenia whilst on holiday.