The Venje 1998 kicked off the second round of tasting. The label is invisible, obscured by decades of dust, yet the aroma and taste are remarkably distinct and exquisite. The wine is simply incredibly youthful. It is worth recalling that this was the champion of the inaugural Decanter awards in 2004. Venje is the name of vinyard planted with Graševina, Sauvignon blanc, Pinot gris, Tram,iner and Riesling, and the wine has the same name.
Gold wines from the Decanter 2004
It is less widely known that the Graševina 2002 also won the same title in its category at that time. The tasting then proceeded through the Venje vintages in a more conventional order, moving from younger to older: the 2015 is the current release, followed by the 2012, 2010, 2008, 2007, and then the 2006, a vintage I have repeatedly described as the best Croatian wine. We also tasted the 2004, 2003, and 2002 vintages.
It is hard to believe just how fresh the vast majority of those wines are. Seize every opportunity to taste them: they will brighten your day, no matter how good or bad it might be...