This is the culmination of twenty years of work on revitalizing indigenous grapevine varieties from the Zagorje region, said Darko Bratković, Director of Trgocentar, at the opening of the Wine Boutique Hotel in Mirkovec, near Sveti Križ Začretje. The Vitus winery, part of Trgocentar and dedicated to reviving forgotten Zagorje varieties for two decades, now also operates a 12-room hotel housed in a renovated manor, situated next to a modern wine cellar and tasting room. Bratković thanked everyone who had participated in the project over the past twenty years, especially the Trgocentar staff, without whom, like he said, none of these achievements would have been possible.
The Vitus Winery has fully dedicated itself to the revitalization and preservation of nearly forgotten indigenous grape varieties, most notably Belina starohrvatska, also known as Gouais blanc or Heunisch weiss, Volovina crvena, Modra kosovina and Dišeća ranina. Vitus is a key partner to Krapina-Zagorje County, the Faculty of Agriculture in Zagreb, and the Institute for Viticulture and Enology in this endeavor.
300,000 grapevine grafts annually
The Vitus winery also operates a nursery that produces over 300,000 grafts of indigenous grape varieties for sale each year. Significant quantities have been purchased by major Zagorje wineries such as Bolfan Vinski Vrh and Kopjar. Dr. Edi Maletić, a professor at the Faculty of Agriculture who has been involved in the project since 2005, expressed his gratitude to Vitus and the County for these efforts. Krapina-Zagorje County Prefect Željko Kolar announced that the County would fully subsidize anyone who decides to purchase and plant indigenous varieties from the Vitus nursery.
The ceremony concluded with a tasting of wines made from indigenous grape varieties. Vitus’s chief winemaker Mladen Kantoci proudly opened the tasting with Albuelis Brut, a sparkling wine crafted from indigenous varieties Dišeća Ranina, Svetokriška Belina, and Belina Starohrvatska, which won a silver medal at this year’s Decanter awards. Below are photographs of the hotel and winery.
Tasting wines made from indigenous varieties
