Earlier this spring we had a pleasure to show our hospitality to several quite interesting guests from USA. Mr. Frank Dietrich of Blue Danube Wines, joined by his staff, wine writer Marcy Gordon and Zdravko and Marion Podolski of GoHvar blog all joined us at a very special little tasting in Benkovac.
The tasting was held at a 15th century Benkovac castle – an impressive historic monument that was nicely restored and now houses a local museum. It is often used as a great presentation venue for various events.
When the guests arrived, the food was also served. Just small bites but very tasty and quite authentic: escargot done the traditional way for the region…
and prisnac.
But the stars of the day were, of course, local wines! All the major wine makers showed up: Škaulj, Figurica, Masvin…
Almost all wines were organic and had the eco label which was a bit surprising but I am glad that the wine makers of the region are taking the right path after the war and neglected vineyards. Most of the wines were local maraština (white), merlot, plavac but also Masvin served their own Crljenak which was surprisingly good.
One of more interesting wines was Asseria by small Bačić winery as it was a blend of several wines and also local maraska cherry brandy.
The event was a great success and the best proof how a very unique settings can serve as a fabulous place for small and intimate events. The organisation was at a high level and all wines served proved that the quality is (finally) coming back to the region of Ravni Kotari. The region was once a major exporter of wines but, in the past 60-70 years has lost all the quality in favor of mass production… Badel, a major Croatian company for wine and liquor, made the tide turn with their Korlat vineyards and now is being followed by small local winemakers all over the region.
The Benkovac tourist board with Bankovac Museum did a wonderful job in organizing everything!
So, what to say but “Živjeli!”
Explore more of Croatian food and wine with our Culinary Croatia.