Vina Laguna Castello 2012, Istria, Croatia. €19.95
I made one brief trip to Croatia a few years ago, and have dreaming up ruses to get me back there ever since. The country is stunningly beautiful, one of those places where the picture postcard images exist in reality. The wines are pretty good too.
They have been making it since the time of the Ancient Greeks. Today they have a bewildering number of wine regions, and a huge number of their own indigenous grapes too. Some have real potential. Sadly for us, the internal market is very strong so not many get beyond the border, and fewer still over here to Ireland.
However, one enterprising woman, Liliane Scully and her company Adriatico, bring in the wines of Vina Laguna in Istria. Vina laguna was a co-operative in the 1930s, when Istria was part of Italy.
It then became a state-run operation in Tito’s Yugoslavia, before being privatised and completely revamped in recent years. This is a large company, who also make cheese and some very delicious olive oil. I am a fan of their white wine, Malvazija Istarska, a variety of Muscat that is fresh, floral and dry. But recently I tried out their Castello, usually made from a blend of local and international grapes, but in 2012 made solely from Merlot, Syrah and Cabernet.
It is rich, rounded and powerful with delectable dark chocolate and ripe plums. Buy it: €19.95 from Mitchell & Son, Clontarf Wines and Gibneys, Malahide.
Weissenoher Altfränkisch Klosterbier
This week we move to Germany for our beer, to Franconia to be exact, and one of the oldest breweries in the world. Set up by the Benedictines in the 11th century, the Weissenoher Klosterbraurei has been in the hands of the Winkler family for five generations.
Located in the small hamlet of Weissenohe, between Bamberg and Nuremberg, my source tells me that this is one of the more beautiful breweries, using open-top fermenters “almost like a swimming pool”, and has a small restaurant and tap room next door, should you find yourself in Franconia.
This is technically a lager, as it is bottom-fermented, although it is deep brown in colour thanks to the dark malts used - and malts are what the Klosterbier is all about.
This is the antithesis of a hop-charged IPA, a deep russet brown colour, with soft gentle malty flavours of toasted nuts, freshly baked bread and hay. With 5 per cent alcohol, it is a very nicely rounded and balanced beer. Buy it: €3 to €3.20 from O'Briens and specialist beer retailers for a 500ml bottle.
