2018 Zlatan Crljenak

100% Crljenak Kaštelanski (aka Primitivo, Zinfandel, Tribidrag...)

Tasting Notes: This is the original and authentic Zinfandel grape! Proven by UC Davis professor Carole Meredith, this grape has ended any speculation about whether or not Croatia is the home of Zinfandel. This vibrant, extracted wine offers bright fruit, fresh cherries and plums on the nose. Great structure and personality! It is full-bodied, robust, yet youthful with inviting drinkability.

Enjoy it with pasta with meat sauces, roasted and grilled red meats, or cured meats and aged parmeggiano cheese.

Appellation: Makarska, Dalmatia, Croatia

Density & Yield: 3,000 vines/ha; 0.7 kg/vine

Annual Production: 20,000 bottles

Alcohol: 14.5%

Climate: Mediterranean, with dry and hot summers, and mild winters

Terrain: With the strong roots of the Crljenak vines clinging to the side of the mountains, they receive plenty of sunshine not only from the sun itself, but from the reflection in the stunningly clear Adriatic Sea and the limestone rocks on the ground. Because of the more than ideal climate, this is considered an organic microclimate perfect for vine growing which the Ancient Greeks settled and planted with vines pre-Roman Empire. A very rocky soil that is mostly red clay topsoil with a rugged limestone base.

Farming: Organic. No irrigation, minimal amount of spraying in Spring and mid-summer months, with small amounts of powdered sulfites and occasionally copper.

Vinification: Hand-harvest followed by 8-14 days of skin maceration in stainless steel tanks, later controlled fermentation in wooden vinificators for an additional 8-10 days at a temperature of 22° C - 25° C. Fermentation is strictly done through native/natural yeasts. The wine is aged for 12 months in large used Slavonian and French oak barrels of 4,000 and 8,000 liters, coarsely fined, and not filtered.