RESURRECTION OF A WINE REGION
Prior to 1976, the Wine World believed that the only great wines came from France and its many wine regions. Wine was a mystery then. It was America’s Bi-Centennial Year so ironically a “Brit” by the name of Steve Spurrier came up with a wine tasting to celebrate the two hundred years of America’s relationship with France. Our Friendship has grown over that 200 year span so why not have a blind wine judging of France’s BEST vs. America’s unknown wines. Nine French Wine Judges provided their insight and found from the Blind Wine Judging that the American Wines were very good with an American White Wine (Chateau Montelena Winery Chardonnay) and an American Red Wine (Stag’s Leap Cabernet Sauvignon) were judged the BEST in their Class. This event was witnessed by an American Journalist by the name of George Taber who wrote for Time Magazine, with no other journalists at the event, even though they were invited to witness the happenings of this Bi-Centennial Event. What evolved from Mr. Taber’s eight-paragraph article was phenomenal with California being put on the World Map as a Wine Region. As the years progressed, other Wine Regions were recognized like Argentina, Chile, New Zealand, Australia, Oregon, Washington State, and Texas. It took a lot of effort and thousands of medals later, but those wine regions are becoming known for producing outstanding wines. The biggest challenge to getting world-wide recognition as a Wine Region is being able to produce enough wines, quantity-wise, to get universal recognition and acclaim. Texas is slowly getting there.
Fast forward to last Saturday, Bernhardt Winery hosted an International Wine Event show-casing wines from the Ancient Thrace, more specifically Bulgaria. Remnants of winemaking in Bulgaria can be traced back over 6,000 years. Thrace is a geographical and historical region in southeastern Europe now split between Bulgaria, Greece and Turkey. One of Ancient Thrace’s greatest assets was the Danube River, which is Europe’s second longest river which provides direct access to Central Europe. I was there at the wine tastings and I witnessed the same wonder that George Taber sensed in 1976. Velizar Chatalbashev from Bulgaria presented wines from Antiquity Wine Curation, Bononia Estate Winery and Vineyards, The Jolly Vinters, Katarzna Estate, and Винарска изба Рупел – Rupel Winery. Attendees were amazed at the Movred Red Wines made from grapes that trace back in the Ancient Thrace to around 5,000 BC. These amazing reds were well structured with a rounded tannin structure hosting blueberries, some juicy red cherry, interspaced with nuances of vanilla, leather, and coffee. I was yearning for a ribeye steak to pair with this special red. This Mavrud got my full attention while the white wines made from the normal white classic grapes like Chardonnay and Sauvignon Blanc received great ratings. Let’s face it, we can find Chardonnays and other white wines in numerous places, but this Mavrud is very special. It is probably the FATHER of all red wines in the world.
The Antiquity Wine Curation is readily available at Bernhardt Winery. If you want to experience what I experienced last Saturday, please check out Bernhardt Winery’s special tastings of these Antiquity Wine Curation. In addition, Bernhardt Winery is showcasing these wines at Margaretville this weekend under the supervision of Brand Ambassador, Helena Van Orden.
The World had a chance at one time to experience these great wines from Bulgaria. With Russian domination and Communism, the Bulgarian Wine Industry was almost destroyed. After the Fall of Communism in Bulgaria, young, passionate winemakers arose to restore the ancient vineyards and produce great wines for the world to enjoy. Please consider to add Bulgaria to the wine regions you enjoy.