Slovenian wines

Slovenian wine is right in the heart of European viticulture. Influences from the Pannonian Plain, Styria and the Adriatic Sea make wine from Slovenia so exciting. Wine has been produced in Slovenia since the time of the Celts and Illyrians, long before the Romans introduced the vine to France, Spain and Germany on their way through Europe. Today, Slovenia can be proud of more than 28,000 wineries and cellars that bring between 80 and 90 million liters of wine to the market each year and cultivate vines on more than 22,000 hectares. 

Almost 75% of the wines produced in Slovenia are white wines, with the majority being drunk right in the country and only 6.1 million liters exported annually. Most of it stays in the Balkans, but the USA and the Czech Republic are also good buyers of the wines from Slovenia.

The wine regions of Slovenia

• Drava Valley (Podravje) in the northeast of the country
• Adriatic coastland (Primorska)
• Sava Valley (Posavje) in the south of the country on the border with Croatia

Successful even without Rome - Slovenia's viticulture

Unlike many other major European wine-growing regions, the history of Slovenian viticulture dates back to pre-Roman influences and can be traced back to the Celtic and Illyrian tribes who cultivated vines between the 5th and 4th centuries BCE. In the Middle Ages, the Christian Church, through the monasteries, controlled most of the wine production in Slovenia. Under the rule of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, there were some private wineries in the region, but after the fall of the Empire and the establishment of Yugoslavia, most of them were dissolved.

In 1967, the government established the PSVVS (Economic Association for Viticulture and Wine Production), which introduced testing procedures for quality assurance and issued seals of approval for wines that met the organization's standards. In 1991, Slovenia became the first Yugoslav republic to declare independence. While the wine industry, like other sectors of the Slovenian economy, experienced some decline after the turmoil of the Yugoslav wars, the region's strong ties to the West allowed for a rapid upswing in viticulture. Today, the Slovenian wine industry is the most advanced and well-developed of the former Yugoslav republics and is beginning to make a splash on the world wine market.

In the middle of it instead of just being there - Slovenia's geography

Slovenia has a diverse geography that offers a wide variety of different microclimates. The country borders Austria to the north, Italy and the Adriatic Sea to the west. Hungary lies to the east and Croatia forms the southern border. Slovenia has mostly a continental climate with cold, dry winters and hot summers. The far western regions of the Littoral have some Mediterranean influence. The greatest threats to viticulture in the region include frost in spring, drought during the growing season, and hail in summer.

Many of Slovenia's vineyards are located on the foothills of the Julian Alps and Karavanke Mountains and on the Pannonian Plain. The rivers Drava (Drava) and Sava (Sava) have a great influence the viticulture in the respective plains.

Wine regions - Slovenia in detail

Adriatic Coastal Region (Primorska) - Littoral Region

In the Primorska wine-growing region there are two of the most famous and important wine-growing areas in Slovenia, the districts of Gorizia Hilla (Goriška brda) and Koper. The Brda district borders the Italian wine region of Friuli Venezia Giulia with the Gorizia Hills Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC). This region was one of the first in Slovenia to attempt to establish an international reputation. The area is planted with the international grape varieties Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Sauvignon blanc, Pinot gris (Sivi Pinot) and Pinot noir (Modri Pinot), as well as Rebula, Refosco (Refošk) and Friulano. Brda is best known for its Rebula white wine and Merlot-Cabernet cuvées.

The Koper district on the Istrian peninsula on the Adriatic coast is the warmest wine region in Slovenia. Refosco and Malvazija grape varieties are most commonly grown in Koper. The Karst Plateau area near the Italian city of Trieste is known for its Teran wine style, a very dark, highly acidic red wine made from Refosco grapes grown on the region's red, iron-rich soils.

The Vipava Valley specializes in light, crisp white wines made from the local Pinela and Zelen grapes. Other grape varieties grown throughout the Littoral region include Barbera, Beli Pinot (Beli Burgundec), Cabernet Franc, Cipro, Glera, Klarnica, Laški Rizling, Maločrn, Rumeni Muškat, Syrah and Vitovska Grganja.

Sava Valley (Posavje)

The Lower Sava wine region (Posavska vinorodna dežela) is the only Slovenian wine region that produces more red wine than white, although not on a large scale. The area is divided into three districts. The Bizeljsko-Brežice district is known for the production of sparkling wine and acidic white wines from the Rumeni Plavec grape variety. The district of Lower Carniola is known for the production of Cviček, which is made from a blend of white and red grapes, mainly Kraljevina and Žametovka. The district of White Carniola is known for its red wine made from Modra Frankinja and Rumeni Muškat. Other grape varieties grown in the Lower Sava Valley are Beli Pinot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Gamay, Modri Pinot, Neuburger, Ranina, Rdeča Zlahtnina, Renski Rizling, Šentlovrenka, Šipon, Sivi Pinot, Traminec and Zweigelt.

Drava Valley (Podravje)

The Drava wine region (Podravska vinorodna dežela) is the largest wine region in Slovenia and is divided into 7 districts. The Radgona-Kapela district was the first Slovenian wine region where sparkling wine (penina) was produced according to the champagne method in 1852. The district of Ljutomer-Ormož includes the village of Jeruzalem, known for white wine made from Dišeči Traminec and Ranina. Together with Radgona-Kapela and Maribor district, Ljutomer-Ormož produces some of the best wines in the Drava Valley. The quality of the Haloze district is increasing, but this district, as well as the Prekmurje, Central Slovenian Hills and Šmarje-Virštanj districts, have only a small production that is consumed locally. Almost 97% of the wine produced in the Drava Valley is white wine. Other grape varieties found in the Drava Valley include Chasselas, Gamay, Kerner, Kraljevina, Muškat Otonel, Portugalka, Ranfol, Rizvanec, Rumeni Muškat, Zeleni Silvanec, Zlahtnina and Zweigelt.

Viticulture and vinification in Slovenia

In Slovenia, many vineyards are located on slopes or are terraced. Originally, vines were raised pergola style to optimize yield. However, the change of emphasis to the production of quality wines in Slovenia has led to more and more vineyards being converted to Guyot rearing. The steep terrain of most vineyards favors the use of hand harvesting over mechanical harvesting.

Slovenia has traditionally produced single varietal wines rather than cuvees, but cuvee production is increasing. While wines used to be aged in large Slovenian or Slavonian wooden barrels, the trend today is toward small barrels of varying sizes made from French and Slovenian oak. In the Littoral region, both red and white wines often undergo malolactic fermentation, although in the Drava and Sava Valleys this technique is generally used only for red wine production.

Sweet wines - the Drava Valley leads the way

Passito-style dessert wines are produced in the Littoral, while the Brda region specializes in wines made from Verduc and Pikolit. In the Drava Valley, botrytized wines are produced from Laški Rizling, Renski Rizling and Šipon, classified according to a system similar to the German wine classification based on sweetness, ranging from pozna trgatev (Spätlese), izbor (Auslese) and jagodni izbor (Beerenauslese) to ledeno vino (Eiswein) and suhi jagodni izbor (Trockenbeerenauslese).