Slovenia's Wine Revolution

Overshadowed by the countries that surround it, Slovenia—known more as Melania Trump’s country of origin—is also a wine lover’s sacred paradise.

- Chris Boiling

“I don’t eat my workers, and they know it.” Biodynamic winemaker Radovan Šuman says while introducing me to his staff—ducks and sheep. It’s another memorable moment from my short tour of one of the most fascinating wine countries in Europe—Slovenia.

In the space of a few days and a few hundred miles, I have seen and tasted the world of wine. I have indulged in some of the best dry white wines in the world—pure expressions of Sauvignon Blanc, Riesling, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Gris, Chardonnay and Traminer. I have tried their funky counterparts—Sauvignon Blancs that have been made for ageing, Pinot Gris that are pinker than most rosé wines, Traminers kept for 18 years in oak barrels, and white wines where the grapes have been macerated for more than a year.

I have drunk world-class reds made from Pinot Noir, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Barbera grapes. I also had great examples of lesser-known grape varieties such as Furmint, Rebula, Pinela, Zelen, Blaufränkisch and Zweigelt. And I’ve savoured some of the most unusual and complex blends too. A field blend called Zaria is single-handedly saving some of the country’s oldest white grapes: 55 per cent Pinela, 20 per cent Zelen, 10 per cent Rebula, eight per cent Vitovska, four per cent Klarnica, 2 per cent Chardonnay, and one per cent Rumeni Muškat. And there is a red wine made from 50 per cent Pokalca (Schioppettino), 30 per cent Modra Frankinja (Blaufränkisch) and 20 per cent Refošk (Refosco).

I have consumed wine from huge stainless steel tanks, barriques, cement eggs and amphorae. I’ve seen modern wineries built into hills, cellars that date back to 1239 and caves carved out by hand. I’ve been to the world’s oldest grapevine and another one that survived phylloxera because its roots were inside a house. I’ve also seen swathes of new plantings on stunning terraced slopes.