Decanter publishes results of the latest regional tasting: Wines from 13 Southeast European countries were tasted and Vinistra members shine – five Istrian wines among the best

The Croatian wine scene has once again confirmed its top-tier quality on the international stage. As part of a regional wine tasting organised by Decanter, the 2021 Teran by Robi Bertoša from Istria was named the best wine of Southeast Europe.

The winning wine was selected from 160 samples from 13 Southeast European countries. Three experienced Decanter judges — panel chair Caroline Gilby MW, Ana Jackson MW, and Igor Luković — evaluated wines from Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Montenegro, Greece, Croatia, Kosovo, Moldova, North Macedonia, Romania, Slovenia, and Serbia. Teran Bertoša received an outstanding 96 points out of a possible 100.

The regional tasting placed special emphasis on red wines and indigenous grape varieties. Croatia was represented by 37 samples, and in addition to the overall winner, four more Croatian wines received an impressive 95 points — all from Istria: Teran Deklić 2022, Enoist III 2022, Clai Baracija Refošk 2022, and Kabola Amfora Teran 2020.

A total of 12 Croatian wines scored between 90 and 94 points, which according to Decanter standards corresponds to a Silver Medal and confirms the consistently high quality of domestic wine production.

Teran competes with the World’s finest wines

“I am extremely pleased with this recognition. I see it as confirmation of the quality of Istria as a wine region, but also of Istrian Teran as an exceptional variety with enormous potential. This is a wine that strongly conveys the character of the Istrian land, and this high score proves that indigenous Istrian varieties can compete with the world’s best wines,” said Robi Bertoša, a winemaker from Motovun, a town renowned for its outstanding Terans.

He was echoed by Luka Rossi, President of Vinistra, the association of Istrian vinegrowers and winemakers, who emphasised that Istrian wines belong at the very top of the global wine scene.

“Our long-standing partnership with Decanter has enabled the quality of our indigenous varieties to be evaluated in the most relevant international context, and our winemakers consistently achieve top scores. Through strategic cooperation with Decanter, Vinistra systematically works on the international promotion of Istrian and Croatian wines, with a particular focus on indigenous varieties and Istria as an attractive wine region. The results of this tasting further position Croatia as one of the most exciting wine countries in the region,” Rossi said.

Read the article: Southeastern European reds panel tasting.pdf