Cuvée No.1 (2013)

About this wine

This vintage of Cuvée No.1 from Vinarija Zvonko Bogdan is a blend of Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Blaufränkisch from vineyards around Lake Palic in the Subotica region of northern Serbia. In the glass it shows a deep ruby color and aromas of blackberry, blackcurrant and dark cherry with hints of graphite, cocoa, mint tea and subtle vanilla from aging in small oak barrels. On the palate it is dry, full bodied and layered, with ripe black cherry and plum fruit wrapped in fine grained tannins and lively but balanced acidity, giving a long and savory finish. The wine is aged for about 13 months in 225 liter oak barrels, which adds gentle notes of spice and toast without covering the fruit. Cuvée No.1 has become one of Serbia’s most decorated red wines, earning multiple gold medals at the Decanter World Wine Awards, and it shows a modern yet clearly regional style that highlights both international Bordeaux grapes and the local Blaufränkisch. Over time in the glass it continues to open, revealing more dried fruit, sweet spice and a firm, elegant structure that promises further development in bottle.

About the grape

Merlot originated in Bordeaux and has become the main red variety in many Serbian vineyards, and around Subotica it forms the core of Cuvée No.1, planted on warm, sandy soils and cropped to low yields for concentration. Cabernet Franc, an older parent of Cabernet Sauvignon from southwest France, is grown here in carefully managed rows, where canopy work and green harvest keep the bunches airy and healthy, so it can contribute fine tannins and herbal complexity to the blend. Blaufränkisch, known locally as Frankovka, is a traditional central European grape with a long history in the Pannonian basin, and at this estate it is often planted in slightly cooler parcels near Lake Palić to preserve its natural acidity and spice. For this wine the three varieties are picked by hand, fermented and matured separately in 225 liter oak barrels, then blended to balance Merlot richness, Cabernet Franc structure and Blaufränkisch freshness in a single cuvée.

Quick facts

• 🏅 Cuvée No.1 is the first Serbian wine to collect Decanter World Wine Awards gold medals in three consecutive years, turning an ambitious regional red into an international trophy hunter
• 🌊 The grapes for this wine grow on land once covered by the ancient Pannonian Sea, with vines rooting deep into layers of limestone, clay and silicate stone that were left behind as the sea dried up
• 🧪 The winery is so strict about keeping Cuvée No.1 truly worthy of its name that entire harvests, including 2018 and 2020, were never bottled as Cuvée No.1 when they felt the quality was not perfect
• 🍇 Your 2013 vintage comes from the most original phase of the project, when Merlot, Cabernet Franc and Blaufränkisch were still blended together, mixing classic Bordeaux inspiration with a Central European grape twist
• 🌍 Cuvée No.1 has become the signature calling card of Vinarija Zvonko Bogdan, with around thirty to thirty five thousand bottles per vintage traveling from Subotica and Palić to shelves in former Yugoslav countries, Austria, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, Russia, the United States and China

Palate profile

Producer

Vinarija Zvonko Bogdan is a modern winery founded in 2008 in the historic winegrowing area around Lake Palić in northern Serbia. The estate is named after Zvonko Bogdan, a celebrated local singer of traditional songs whose artistic legacy the winery connects with its wines and hospitality. Its striking building, designed in the Pannonian secession style, houses state of the art French technology, spacious tasting rooms and a restaurant that overlooks the surrounding vineyards. The winery farms its own vineyards on several nearby sites and has quickly gained international recognition for wines that aim to express the character of the Palić terroir while honoring a regional winemaking tradition that is more than two millennia old.