Frano Miloš became famous for Stagnum, the first Croatian cult wine, whose first harvest is just turning a quarter of a century. Stagnum is still today in excellent form. It is the only Croatian wine released to the market after 8 to 10 years: the current harvest on the market is from 2007. Furthermore, this wine has proven, together with some Dingač wines by Kiridžija, that Plavac wines can be aged truly long and productively. The 2003 Stagnum is just nearing its peak. Stagnums belong to the group of expensive Dalmatian wines: regular harvest sell in stores for around 200 kunas, while older ones, like the 2003, for 350 to 400 kunas.
However, Frano Miloš and his sons Josip and Ivan, who are slowly playing an increasingly important role in the family business, are differentiated from other Croatian wineries by their basic Plavac wines. The Miloš Winery is, as far as we know, the only one in all of Dalmatia which releases its basic wines four years after the harvest, in a completely ripe phase.
Lately we tasted the 2013 Plavac, just recently on the market. It is a balanced, almost elegant, very transparent wine with mixed aromas of fresh and dry, dark summer fruit, buses and rosemary, with tat typical terroir Miloš scent of hot soil, with incredibly large freshness for a Pelješac Plavac Mali. There are also volatile acids, but in a small amount, which doesn’t make the wine worse.
It is especially important that Miloš has not yet succumbed to a trend going back 5 or 6 years and branding numerous Plavac wines: the wine is not single-dimensionally fruity, and is not polished. This is why we wrote it is almost elegant. This quite subtle trace of rusticity expresses the authenticity of Miloš’s winery. This is an old, but refined style of Plavac, without the typical Pelješac mistakes from the not so distant past, such as unripe tannins or a hollow middle palate. The 2013 Plavac is a compact, recognisable, clear and drinkable wine which delivers high quality for its 70 kunas. And the Miloš family certainly belongs among the most model wine growers in all of Croatia.
We tasted Miloš’s Plavac for two days at various temperatures, and with very different food: it went well with smoked goat cheese, but also with pecorino, then with bacon as well as kulen sausage. Tuna, bonito, mackerel, sardines and salmon, as well as lighter grilled meats, are our favourites with this wine.
For the original and more from Plava Kamenica, click here.
