When the WOW Association, bringing together nearly 200 women from all over Croatia, joins forces with an excellent wine producer like Feravino and a bar hidden at the yard of 50 Ilica St. in Zagreb – and the event is taking place on Valentine’s Day – the success is guaranteed. And when the evening includes sparkling wines, a lot of love and a great atmosphere – all under the slogan “It’s All About Love” – the memories remain forever.
In the past five years, the Swanky Monkey Garden Bar has expanded its wine list, which currently includes some twenty different Croatian and international labels. Despite the industrial design of the interior, with its energy and warmth, it has awoken positive energy among the wine fans gathered there on Valentine’s Day evening. The presenters of sparkling wines were Maja Kuzmanović from WOW and Alen Britvarević from Feravino, while Swanky’s chief barman and co-founder of Art of Bar, Filip Lipnik, designed exclusively for Feravino two signature cocktails based on sparkling wines and carefully selected liqueurs which were ideally paired with them.
That evening the cocktails were mixed and presented by the young Karlo Bošnjak, named Carlito for the occasion, while Britvarević said at the beginning: “Last year, the cellar in Feričanci was equipped with new filling equipment for filling still and sparkling wines. It is now a modern plant with three autoclaves for the production of sparkling wines according to the Charmat method, which is a completely new technology in our cellar since we used to produce sparkling wines according to the classic method of in-bottle fermentation. Our new products – Grasecco and Francesca – are 100% Croatian products and they are produced by this new method which is typical for the production of Italian prosecco wines. We are extremely pleased with the market’s response, so I must congratulate our young oenologist Antonia Čeme and the guest oenologist Matjaž Lemut,” he said, emphasizing the affordable price of 50 kuna of both sparkling wines.
The Grasecco and Francesca sparkling wines, which had their gala premiere at the Croatian National Theatre in Zagreb in September, were the real stars of the evening. They are refreshing and light, perfect for the summer, but also for spring, autumn and winter, said guest sommelier Mario Meštrović. Grasecco is wholly-made from Graševina, while Francesca is wholly-made from Frankovka, both with modern, crazy, hipster and entirely different labels than those we are used to from local producers.
“The author of the brilliant, modern, hipster, trendy label is the well-known Croatian designer Miran Tomičić, the creative director of the Octopus Ink brand design agency, and it is inspired by our consumers who are reflected in it. The idea was to create a contemporary, playful, youthful brand based on the local approach and tradition. Consumers today do not just want a product, they are looking for something more – they are looking for a story. They do not just use a brand, they follow it, listen and talk to it. They care about the rationale of the brand and its visual identity,” said Britvarević.
At Swanky, the evening began with the Extra Brut Grasecco of a gently greenish colour that was matched with the Granny Smith apples and Smoki, which revealed the strength of its beads and the excellent pairing of its scent of green apple and a delicious almond bitterness of Graševina for the aftertaste. The evening continued with the tasting of Grasecco in the Brut variant with tortilla chips, and everyone was delighted to welcome Francesca, which wins you over with delicate pink colour and the subtle scent of ripe pomegranate, and a rich and long-lasting flavour dominated by strawberries and raspberries. Francesca was excellently paired with a delicious liver pate that was prepared according to a unique recipe by Ivan Srpek from the Bornstein Wine Shop and Wine Bar. The event organiser Vlasta Pirnat presented Karlo, the bartender who made excellent cocktails for the conclusion of the evening. These were Miss with Francesca and Brko with Grasecco.
Andrija Pirnat, the host and co-owner of Swanky, welcomed the guests and briefly introduced his already well-known bar. One thing is sure: we had a wonderful time, perfectly tailored for Valentine’s Day, and we will drink these sparkling wines and cocktails on other occasions as well. Now we have a Croatian answer to Italian prosecco and fantastic cocktails at the excellent Swanky Monkey Garden ambience. WOW!
More news about Croatian wines can be found in the Lifestyle section.
