Organizers of the Decanter World Wine Awards, the most important global wine rating, notified the winemakers of the results on Thursday. After the already known gold medals for the large winery Badel and small Korčula winemaker Jakša Krajančić, the Franković family from Buje in Istria published on Facebook they have received a gold and silver medal from Decanter.
Their aged Malvazija Korona 2016 is a gold winner, and their Teran wine won silver. The Franković family received a silver for the Korona 2015 last year at DWWA, while their Muscat Luna d’Oro then won 95 points. Vineyards of the Franković family are located on the famous western Istria position named Santa Lucia. The Korona 2016 also won gold at the last Vinistra festival.
Considering they were relatively unknown on the Croatian market up to three years ago, they have made a significant advance in a relatively short time. Their wines are now listed in the most prestigious Croatian hotels and restaurants, such as the Esplanade where they can be had by the glass.
Joining them from Istria is also western Istria veteran Franco Cattunar from Brtonigla. A gold was awarded to his macerated Malvazija Collina from 2015, fermented with wild yeasts.
Collina, Cattunar’s prestigious wine, is a Malvazija with a massive body, large density, strong aromas and long aftertaste. Cattunar owns the largest number of hectares of vineyards of all private winemakers in Istria, and his project Four Soils, in which he makes four various Malvazijas from four types of soil in one vineyard, belongs among the most convincing presentations of micro terroir in Croatia.
His Istrian compatriot Marko Fakin, the absolute champion of the last Vinistra, received a gold for his young Teran Il Primo 2017. This wine will be significantly better in a few years. This award confirms him as the most important Istrian winemaker of the new generation. Last year Decanter gave him a gold medal for the La Prima Malvazija.
Joining the Istrian crew is one of the most famous Slavonian winemakers, Vlado Krauthaker, showered with Decanter medals. His Graševina Vidim earned a bronze, as did the red cuvee Mercs. The Pinot Nero, Graševina Mitrovac and the Green Silvaner from a late harvest also took bronze.
He was given a gold medal for the late harvest Graševina, which was to be expected, as it is one of the great world dessert wines, but also for his Incorcio Manzoni, an unusual and rare variety, from the Krauthaker orange series Kuvlakhe. The triumph of this non-commercial wine made from a grape unknown in Croatia is probably the biggest surprise among the numerous medals for Croatian wines at Decanter.
It is now quite clear that the Croatian wine industry has never been better in quality. It is time to start working again on organized and targeted export, as Croatia can become a first class niche wine nation, whose bottles should be sold in the leading global restaurants, hotels and wine shops.
Translated from Plava Kamenica, for the original click here.
