As I write, I’m sipping a white wine from Serbia. This would be a brilliant wine to put into a blind tasting: I reckon most people would suggest that it’s a serious dry Loire Chenin Blanc.
In fact, it has no Chenin in it at all. It’s made by a French couple, Cyrille Bongiraud and Estelle Germain, and the winery name is Francuska Vinarija. They moved from France to the Serbian village of Rogljevo, drawn by the limestone soils, beginning here in 2003 and moving full time in 2007. Bongiraud should be able to spot a good terroir: he’s a specialist vineyard soil consultant. And, working naturally, they are making some great wines, including this wonderful white blend.
UK agent is Indigo Wine.
Francuska Vinarija Poema 2009 Serbia
A blend of Riesling, Muscat, Tamjanika and Grasevina, from limestone soils. Very stony, minerally wine with nutty, waxy, appley notes. Restrained nose of pear and apple pie leads to a palate that is lively, textured and mineral. Quite a profound wine with pith and mineral notes, and lovely complexity. It’s a tiny bit oxidative, but this works brilliantly in the context of this wine. 92/100
Find this wine with wine-searcher.com
3 Comments on A brilliant Serbian white wine
Love to see this wine shared. We are thrilled to work with Cyrille and Estelle here in Chicago, and I believe it is still the only US market to carry the wines, but it won’t be long before more pickup on them.
The response in some of the best restaurants here in Chicago has been fantastic. We joke that it is important not to mention the Riesling in here as it will scare people off…
Cheers,
Damien
Nice one Jamie… It is indeed a top wine. Now if someone could please explain how to pronounce the red, we can tell them the next time someone asks (Obecanje)
Thanks for spreading the word,
OBECANJE is pronounced as /obe’tchanye/ and it means promise, n.
Hope this helps,
t