Croatian wines might have problems with placement on aup-scale markets, but there is always a niche with doors wide open. The Boston Globe organized its 9th Plonkapalooza , tasting and contest for under-15-bucks wines, and four-members jury unanimously decided: the best red wine in this category on US market is 2010 Pelješac by Dingač winery from Pelješac peninsula in southern Dalmatia.
This is an interesting competition with wery strict rules, which could be transferred to Croatian media instead of fancy reviewing of wines no mortals can afford. Boston Globe invited five of the biggest regional distributors to nominate wines they would be happy to serve with a weeknight meal or a Sunday supper. This year jury members were The Globe’s wine critic Ellen Bhang, and Boston sommeliers and chefs Josh Cole, Felisha Foster, and Jason Bond. After compiling the retailers’ nominations, The Boston Globe decided which five whites and five reds they will buy from each shop, to offer them to the jury. As usual, each bottle is slipped into a paper wine sleeve and assigned a number. Each of the four tasters votes for his or her favorites, and then they reveal their judgments.
As Ellen Bhang wrote, this year “an appetizing red from Croatia won the hearts of all four tasters”.
“Descriptors such as “quirky,” “cherry cola,” and “fermented plum” were offered to describe this food-friendly quaff, made from the plavac mali grape, whose parents are believed to be zinfandel and an ancient variety called dobricic”, says The Globe’s reviewer.
Good news for Pelješac, and maybe good news for Croatian wines, they deserve better.
