Valamar Blog

Typical and the most specific wine sort in Istria is malvazija (malvasia). It only grows in Istria and it is a synonym for Istrian white wine. It varies from wheat to golden yellow colour. The scent of malvasia first reminds one of acacia and the content of its basic ingredients makes it medium to high alcoholic, with delicate aroma and fresh taste.

This area’s typical red sort and malvasia’s counterpart is teran. It gives the wine its exquisite rubin red colour with purple reflection; it is of intense uncontrolled scent, mostly berries, and of a strong character. Muscat wines, ideal for desserts, are more and more frequent in Istria nowadays. Muškat’s (Muscat) most prominent features are its golden colour, intense scent of wild carnations and an exquisite aroma, but aphrodisiac effects are often mentioned as well.

And some interesting information related to wine:

• The day when must is officially transformed into wine is Martinje (St. Martin’s Day).

• White wine goes with fish and red wine with meat. However, there are many culinary exceptions.

• The more intense is the food, the stronger wine should be served; the lighter the dish, the lighter wine sort should be served as well.

• Wine loves air. It releases it “sleeping” elements. It is recommended to open a bottle of wine one hour prior to its use and give it time to “breathe”.

• One should be careful with a bottle of wine; it should be moved as less as possible. Remember, wine loves to “sleep” and it is good for it to wake up in your mouth.

• Only the red wine corks are smelled in order to check whether the wine went sour or not. The corks used for white wine, rosé or champagne do not need to be smelled since the bottles are cooled off and the cork loses it potential scent during this process.