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The
wines of Marjan Simčič
Impressive
wines from Goriška
Brda,
on the Italy/Slovenia border
Ceglo
3b, 5212 Dobrovo, Slovenia
Tel: +386 (0)5 395 92 00
Website: www.simcic.si
Marjan
Simčič
Marjan
Simčič is a winegrower in the Goriška Brda wine region in
Slovenia. The vineyards straddle the Slovenian/Italian border, with
half of them on each side. The cellar is 200 metres from the border
in the village of Ceglo.
It’s
a family estate that has been growing wine grapes for five
generations, and Marjan’s father, who is now 82, is still actively
involved. Marjan has been involved for the last 22 years, after he
studied for a year in Burgundy and a year in Bordeaux. He’s
changed things a bit, but claims ‘I’m very respectful of the
traditional vinification. I do old style vinification like my
father,’ he says.
Maceration
of the whites is around 4–6 days, although for some varieties it
is a bit less. The orange wines that are now popular with Slovenian
growers, made by extended maceration of white grapes, are a new
development, and not part of the tradition.
The
terrain here consists of lots of small hills, with many different
microterroirs. ‘This is why Brda can do so many different
varieties,’ says Marjan. ‘We choose the right terroir for the
right variety.’ There are 2000 hectares of vines in the region,
with many small producers. Simčič have 18 hectares of
vines.
During
the communist era, when this was part of Yugoslavia, everything had
to be exported through the cooperatives. But Tito’s regime was
more liberal than most communist countries, and the border wasn’t
sealed. The growers could do trade with their neighbours over in
Italy, and were able to work vineyards that straddled the border,
like Simčič’s.
These
wines are imported into the UK by Bancroft Wines, and RRPs are given
in brackets.
THE
WINES
Marjan
Simčič Pinot
Grigio 2010 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Nicely aromatic, rich and grapey. Full flavoured with some hints
of spice and minerals. Broad, smooth texture. Pure with nice weight
and a touch of structure. 90/100 (Ł13.75)
Marjan
Simčič
Sauvignonasse 2008 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This is the name that’s now used for Tokai Friuliano since the
2005 decision to disallow the use of Tokaji for wines that don’t
come from the Hungarian region. It has a reductive mineral nose with
complex nutty notes. The palate is complex, fresh and fruity with
melon and herb notes. Textured. Real interest here. 92/100 (Ł14.40)
Marjan
Simčič Sauvignon
Reserve 2009 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Complex, broad herby nose is fruity and fresh with bold, full
texture on the palate. Bright, pure and open with a hint of melon. A
rich Sauvignon. 92/100 (Ł20.95)
Marjan
Simčič Opoka
Sauvignon Blanc 2008 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This is from a special terroir: opoka is the name for marl, the
soil from which these wines are made. Brooding complex nose showing
mineral, grapes and herbs. Broad, nutty palate is textured and shows
pure fruit with herb and mineral overtones. Fine, expressive and
fresh. 94/100 (Ł38.50)
Marjan
Simčič Chardonnay
Reserve 2007 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Mineral, herb, spice nose. Superbly complex with herbs, pear,
citrus and mineral notes. The palate is broad with freshness and a
savoury character of flinty mineral notes. Real interest. 93/100 (Ł21)
Marjan
Simčič Opoka
Chardonnay 2009 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Taut, spicy, mineral nose leads to a dense palate with citrus
fruit, some herbs, melon and pear. Subtle toasty notes. Rounded,
harmonious, smooth and quite serious. 94/100 (Ł38.50)
Marjan
Simčič Opoka
Ribolla 2007 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Nutty oxidative nose. Palate is dense and almost structured with
nutty, herby notes. Mineral, spicy and grippy with pear and apple.
Lots of personality. 93/100 (Ł38.50)
Marjan
Simčič Pinot Noir
2009 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Palish colour. Lovely supple, elegant sweet cherry fruit nose
with a sappy edge. Super-elegant silky texture on the palate with
sweet cherry fruit and some spicy overtones. Quite profound. 94/100
(Ł26.95)
Marjan
Simčič Opoka
Merlot 2006 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
A stylish, elegant expression of Merlot with spicy, earthy
undertones to the fresh berry fruits, developing some savoury, spicy
notes and mineral elements. Sophisticated. 92/100 (Ł49.95)
Marjan
Simčič Leonardo
2005 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
A sweet wine made
from Ribolla grapes left on the vine until Autumn, and then dried in
crates until April. They used to dry straw in these rooms, which are
out of the sunlight but very dry. Gold/bronze in colour. Sweet,
intense, viscous and complex with notes of apricot, honey, caramel
and peach, as well as some spiciness. Lively and powerful with
incredible complexity. Some orange peel and tangerine notes, too.
96/100 (Ł33.55 per 37.5 cl)
Wines tasted June 2012
Older
notes, from a tasting in 01/07
Simčič Pinot Grigio
2005 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Quite a full yellow colour. Honeyed, herb-tinged nose with some
freshness. The palate is zippy with a herbal twang to it. Nice full,
fresh stuff that’s very food friendly, and has a sweet, honeyed
edge. 88/100 (Ł9.95)
Simčič
Sauvignon Reserve 2004Goriška Brda, Slovenia
It's Sauvignon, but not as you know it. The grapes are harvested
relatively late and then, rather than press the juice off straight
away or after just a short skin contact, as is normal for whites,
the skins are given an extended maceration of about a week. This
results in a deep coloured wine with some of the characteristics of
a red wine: a bit of tannin and bold, herb-tinged flavours. There's
sweet, grapey, melony fruit here, together with a bit of grassy
herbal character. It's distinctive, warm and intense. I wouldn't say
it's profound - after all, this is Sauvignon, and it lacks true
complexity or minerality. Also, I could understand some people
writing this off as clumsy. But I like it because it is interesting
and it makes me think about what I'm tasting. 91/100 (Ł15.50)
Simčič
Chardonnay Réserve 2003 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
3133 bottles
produced in March 2006; this spends 7–8 days in contact with the
skins. A deep yellow/gold colour it has a really interesting nose.
It’s quite tight with some herbal fruit married with bakery smells
and vanilla oak, but there’s also a savoury, slightly oily
complexity here. The palate is dense, a little tannic even, with a
heavy toasty oak imprint and sweet, bready, herby fruit. It’s a
full-on Chardonnay of great intensity and concentration – no doubt
a bit too full on for some. I like it, though. Very good/excellent
90/100 (Ł15.50)
Simčič Teodor White
Réserve 2003 Goriška Brda , Slovenia
A blend of Ribolla
(60%), Tocai Friulano (20%) and Pinot Grigio (20%); 6130 bottles
made. A deep yellow colour, this has a striking nose that is complex
and unusual, with some herbiness, fat melony fruit, a bit of spice
and some nutty toasty depth. The palate is bold and intense, with a
bit of evolution, some oxidative notes and complex, herby, spicy
fruit. A distinctive wine in a slightly old-fashioned mode. 90/100 (Ł15.50)
Wines
tasted as indicated
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