Page 104 - Terčelj, Dušan. 2015. The Culture of Wine in Slovenia. Edited by Aleš Gačnik. University of Primorska Press, Koper.
P. 104
he Culture of Wine in Slovenia
We can boast that there is no other country in the world that has, on such a small territory,
such varied conditions for viticulture. This influences the variety and character of Slovene
wines. It is our special feature which we should make better use of instead of yearning for
large quantities of one and the same type of Slovene wine. Limited size can be an advantage
and people in politics and business should be aware of this, as should those involved in
winemaking, which is a part of our economy.
Every country, every winegrowing region, as well as every individual winemaker wishes
to protect their winegrowing areas through legislation. Even the Yugoslav monarchy and
socialist Yugoslavia had a division of winegrowing areas. Slovenia largely accepted and
legislated these same areas. Labels on wine bottles must display in clearly visible lettering the
origin of the wine, i.e. the winegrowing region, district, sub-district and even locality.
The expert commission for the assessment of wine at the Agricultural Institute of Slovenia, 1991. The Terčelj family archive.
By variety and blend
Over the millennia, through selection, numerous varieties of grapes were created, tak-
ing into account and making use of natural mutations. Even in ancient times, there were
different varieties of grapes in the Mediterranean. After the collapse of the Roman Empire
and the introduction of Christianity, the processing of grapes spread far north, where new
varieties appeared, adapted to the prevailing natural conditions. Until the collapse of the
old viticultural methods and the appearance of vine-louse, varieties created in a particular
area only slowly spread around Europe. Later, with the revitalisation of viticulture, this
happened much faster. Over the last two centuries, the French varieties of grapes have
spread even outside Europe.
Different blends of wine consist of a number of varieties of grapes. The purpose of blending
is the improvement of the quality of wine. Winemakers like creating various combinations,
thus giving their wine a special mark and character. These combinations or blends are
100
We can boast that there is no other country in the world that has, on such a small territory,
such varied conditions for viticulture. This influences the variety and character of Slovene
wines. It is our special feature which we should make better use of instead of yearning for
large quantities of one and the same type of Slovene wine. Limited size can be an advantage
and people in politics and business should be aware of this, as should those involved in
winemaking, which is a part of our economy.
Every country, every winegrowing region, as well as every individual winemaker wishes
to protect their winegrowing areas through legislation. Even the Yugoslav monarchy and
socialist Yugoslavia had a division of winegrowing areas. Slovenia largely accepted and
legislated these same areas. Labels on wine bottles must display in clearly visible lettering the
origin of the wine, i.e. the winegrowing region, district, sub-district and even locality.
The expert commission for the assessment of wine at the Agricultural Institute of Slovenia, 1991. The Terčelj family archive.
By variety and blend
Over the millennia, through selection, numerous varieties of grapes were created, tak-
ing into account and making use of natural mutations. Even in ancient times, there were
different varieties of grapes in the Mediterranean. After the collapse of the Roman Empire
and the introduction of Christianity, the processing of grapes spread far north, where new
varieties appeared, adapted to the prevailing natural conditions. Until the collapse of the
old viticultural methods and the appearance of vine-louse, varieties created in a particular
area only slowly spread around Europe. Later, with the revitalisation of viticulture, this
happened much faster. Over the last two centuries, the French varieties of grapes have
spread even outside Europe.
Different blends of wine consist of a number of varieties of grapes. The purpose of blending
is the improvement of the quality of wine. Winemakers like creating various combinations,
thus giving their wine a special mark and character. These combinations or blends are
100
