Kabola Amfora Malvazija 2020

This cuvée comes from Kabola's vines in Kanedol, near Momjan, in north-western Istria, on hillsides overlooking the Adriatic at around 275 metres above sea level. The grapes are selected from one of the estate's best plots, with white clay and marl soils conducive to minerality. The Mediterranean climate, tempered by altitude and the proximity of the Alps, gives the Malvazija Istarska harmonious ripeness.

The vines are farmed under certified organic methods. Hand-harvested in September, the grapes are destemmed and placed, unpressed, in Georgian clay amphorae buried more than two metres underground. There they ferment and macerate for around six months on their skins, before being pressed in spring. The wine is then aged for a year in 4,000-litre oak foudres, followed by at least a year in bottle.

This wine reveals notes of quince compote, dried fern, star anise, vanilla, aromatic herbs, butter, ripe peach and bitter almond. The straw colour with golden glints precedes a dry, warm and supple palate of fine freshness. Soft tannins, minerality and a full body lead to a long, harmonious finish.

Croatia may be a very young state, but it is a very old wine country. Wine in Croatia has a long, long history. Vines have been grown here since Antiquity. They were introduced around 5 centuries BC by the Greeks, who planted the first vines in southern Dalmatia, particularly on the islands, whose rocky slopes plunging steeply into an indigo sea were unsuited to any other form of farming. Today the country is enjoying a real renaissance, a direct result of the independence won just over 25 years ago (on 21 June 1991). It has allowed a young, dynamic generation of winegrowers to emerge, firmly resolved to revive a thousand-year-old tradition that was under threat. As in France, wines are strictly labelled according to their origin. There are some 300 official wine regions, generally divided into coastal and inland wines. Most wines are white and are produced inland, while red wines are produced along the coast. Although there are hundreds of grape varieties in Croatia, experts agree that the red Plavac Mali grape produces the best red wine. Plavac Mali is a genetic descendant of Zinfandel, a grape that clearly originates from Croatia and not from Italy, as was long believed. Croatia's sweet Prošek wine is made notably from the white Bogdanuša grape. Istrian Malvazija and Pošip from Korčula produce Croatia's most renowned white wines.