Cabernet Sauvignon was the very reason for the gathering. We had arranged a vertical tasting of wines made from the world’s most widely planted variety for the following day, but Miroslav stumbled upon this lovely Frankovka while looking for Cabernets and couldn't resist opening it as a sort of appetizer.
The following five Cabernets were aged in wooden barrels. The 2016 vintage spent a year aging and still gives the impression of a young wine today; it also boasts wonderful tannins. The 2016 Cabernet Sauvignon that spent an additional year aging underwater is slightly more mature. I have tasted many wines aged in the sea, after all, that story began in Croatia, and this is one of the best. The 2017 vintage is currently at its peak; the rougher characteristics resulting from barrel aging have completely faded. You should pick up a bottle and enjoy it now, or in a year or two.
Buy, and keep
The yield was around one kilogram per vine, which certainly contributed to the wine turning out so well eight years after the harvest. In the 2021 vintage, the influence of the wood is still pronounced. However, based on the experience with the older vintages, it is worth buying now and cellaring for a few years before opening. But buy it now, who knows how long it will remain available at the winery.
The day before that wonderful Monday, we walked among the tanks and discovered a fine Cabernet Sauvignon in one of them. From another, we particularly liked the young Pavlomir Grand Cru Žlahtina. It underwent a half-day maceration, and six months of aging on fine lees gave it a beautifully rounded character. Miroslav also produces an excellent 2024 Chardonnay, or rather, two of them. The first aged for a month in 500-liter barrels and went on to win the only gold medal for that variety at this year’s Vinistra.
And the best-selling one is...
The second spent four months in a tonneau barrel. They will likely end up blended together in the bottle. The Pavlomir winery cellar holds even more wines destined for memorable presentations. And this leads to a final question: which Pavlomir wine sells the most? The answer is clear: Graševina! They move 90,000 liters of it annually in bulk. By comparison, sales of Žlahtina, available in two versions, the standard and the Grand Cru, amount to 20,000 bottles. After all, Miroslav Palinkaš hails from Šarengrad in the Srijem region, so he simply cannot do without Graševina.
