Winemaker Notes
With generous fruit and supple tannins, Merlot is made in a range of styles from everyday-drinking to world-renowned and age-worthy. Merlot is the dominant variety in the wines from Bordeaux’s Right Bank regions of St. Emilion and Pomerol, where it is often blended with Cabernet Franc to spectacular result. Merlot also frequently shines on its own, particularly in California’s Napa Valley. Somm Secret—As much as Miles derided the variety in the 2004 film, Sideways, his prized 1961 Château Cheval Blanc is actually a blend of Merlot and Cabernet Franc.
Between Albania and Bulgaria, the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) shares its southern border with Greece and Greece's wine appellation of the same name.
Though there are three main wine regions of Macedonia (FYROM), interest is growing also in the mountainous areas along the border. The established areas include Pcinya-Osogovo in the east, Pelagoniya-Polog in the west, and the central region of Povardarie (also called the Vardar River Valley). Povardarie is the most influential, including almost 90% of the country’s vineyard area, most of which are within this region’s Tikveš district.
Macedonia (FYROM) produces full-bodied red wines. Prevalent varieties include Vranec as well as Stanušina and Ohridsko Crno (the only genuinely indigenous varieties identified), Kratošija (aka Zinfandel) and a few international varieties. Žilavka, Župljanka, Temjanika (Muscat Blanc à Petit Grains), Smederevka, Rkatsiteli and Graševina are the sources of the fresh white wines of the area.