Evaluating southern wines

Zlatan Crljenak 2019 from the Zlatan Otok winery from Sveta Nedjelja on Hvar won the most points in the evaluation of 26 Croatian wines made from Crljenak, Tribidrag, and Zinfandel, which wine promoter Ivana Pranjić organized at the Zagreb wine bar Wine & Friends. The founder of the winery, the late Zlatan Plenković, planted a test vineyard with Crljenak and related varieties such as Plavac Mali Crno and Plavina about 20 years ago.

This was after discovering that Californian Zinfandel is the same variety as our Crljenak, Tribidrag, or the Italian Primitivo and Kratošija in Montenegro and North Macedonia. Zlatan's sons Nikola and Marin also used their father's experience with the variety, winning this evaluation. At Plenković's urging, Dražan Krolo from Kaštela also planted Crljenak. His Kaštela Crljenak 2020 won second place, with only 0.1 points less. Third was the wine Fetivi 2020 from the Markus winery, in which 87 percent of the Crljenak is seasoned with babić. The uniformity of the quality of Croatian wines was also impressive: 21 won gold medals, and their scores differed by only four points. Five silver wines were one point below the threshold for gold.

Tribidrag, also known as Crljenak Kaštelanski or Pribidrag, is an indigenous red grape variety from Dalmatia, with a long and rich history. This variety was almost forgotten until the discovery of its genetic connection with the famous American Zinfandel and Italian Primitivo, which sparked renewed interest in its planting and preservation. Tribidrag produces powerful, rich wines with pronounced fruity aromas, especially dark berry fruits, and is known for its ability to age for a long time. Today, more and more winemakers are returning to this variety, proudly highlighting its Dalmatian origins and potential for producing top-quality wines.

The judges were oenologists, sommeliers, wine merchants, and publicists: Prof. Ivan Dropuljić, Franjo Francem, Tomo Jakopović, Jana Košćec, Ivo Kozarčanin, Darko Lugarić, Prof. Ivan Pejić, Vjekoslav Stojšić, and Nenad Trifunović, and Željko Suhadolnik was also present. Wines from all over Dalmatia were judged, from Konavle to the islands, Imotski and Kaštela to the Zadar hinterland, and even Kutjevo. The Californian Zinfandel 2018. Grgich Hills Estate and three wines from North Macedonia were also judged: Kratošija 2021. Popov, Barovo 2021., Tikveš od vranca i kratošija and Kratošija 2021. Kamnik. All four won gold, and the highest number of points went to Kratošija 2021 from the Popov winery from North Macedonia.

Wine bar Wine & Friends logistically ensured that the judging went smoothly, and the winner of Croatian Masterchef 2021, Ivan Temšić, prepared refreshments: caramelized celery and chickpea soup with white truffle oil, crème fraîche and fried chickpeas, and tuna pasticada with homemade gnocchi, root vegetable cream and green apple ketchup.

Photos: Cork Croatia