En Primeur Malvazije- 2011 Malvazija Tasting in Zagreb

Winemaker Ivan Damjanić of Damjanić Vino, presenting his new wine

The Regent Esplanade was once again taken over by wine lovers.  Though it was  mainly offered to people in the trade and some guests, the atmosphere was as buzzed up as ever.  Maybe it is in fact these folks who know how to create the buzz.

Winemakers came from Istria to bring a mini-version of the VinIstra fair to Zagreb, presenting their 2011 Malvazijas (along with another wine or two in many cases).

A highlight for me was meeting and tasting the wines from Ivan Damjanić of Damjanić Vino, located just outside of Poreć.  His Malvasija bore lots of fresh fruit, including green apple and ripe peach, and when I came back later in the afternoon to taste his recently-winning Borgonja (Gamay) I found that he’s quite adept at the reds too.  I look forward to visiting his cellar in an upcoming visit in March.

Damjanić wines, chillin’ at En Primeur Malvazije.

Many of the wines today were still a little on the harsh side, hopefully they’ll mellow a bit before release, around Easter.  But 2011 holds tons of promise in the bottle, considered to be one of the strongest vintages in recent history.

Istenić Winery in Slovenia

Visit to Istenić on Thursday, a producer of some interesting sparkling wine from Slovenia.

April at Istenić following a nice tasting in their restaurant.

Disgorging and topping off bottles at Istenić.

Aleš Kristiančič, Movia mastermind

Aleš Kristiančič, Movia mastermind

Starting our winery tour, Veliko 2002 in the glass.

Slovenian Wines all week next week!

Movia in Slovenia

I’m giddy.  Next week I am going to be completely and utterly entrenched in the wines of one of my newfound favorite wine producing countries of all time. Slovenia.

On Tuesday night, I’m teaching a wine class at Trilogija Wine Bar and Restaurant based on the various regions and their specialities, including some Slovenian-inspired dishes.

On Thursday I head out with a few friends to visit 2-3 wineries, one producer of Sparkling and one who is supposedly making some of the best wine in Slovenia as a garagiste.

Friday headed up with a small group to visit a really interesting producer of the grape Zelen, a rare and indigenous variety of grape, and then to Movia.  As in  MOVIA. A winery I’ve long held an unnatural obsession with.

The next day I’ll be joined by more ladies at the Slovenian winery nearest and dearest to my heart, Kabaj.  We’ll spend a super VIP day drinking, learning and exploring Goriska Brda and it’s wonders…including a cooking class where we’ll learn a little something about the gastronomy of the region.

Hope you stay tuned for further updates!