Eastern Europe/Balkan

Sometimes it takes a wine from Morocco to remind you that Cab Sauv can be awesome. This wine sings with minerality, spice, and a depth of red fruits. Not too overbearing, either. Morocco was a flourishing wine-production country until it gained independen

Kadarka is a grape popular in Bulgaria and Romania, but rarely seen in the states. It used to be a significant player in Hungarian Bull’s Blood but is on the decline. The Heimann family is fiercely committed to bringing it back. This wine almost drinks li

‘Egri Bikavér’ translates to ‘Bull’s Blood’, and is an ancient style of Hungarian red. This is a classic example, with a decidedly mineral edge, inky purple fruit flesh, and a medium to medium-plus body. This is Marcell Bukolyi’s first vintage making wine

Refosco is a unique grape indigenous to northeastern Italy and western Slovenia that shows deep earthy granite and minerality. The Štoka estate is located in Kras, which is an extension of Carso in Italy. The two regions combine to make the first cross-bo

Aromas of dark berries and delicate purple flowers, with beautiful salty seaside tang. Winemaker Jerome Charles Binda does not come from a wine background, but made the decision at age 45, after being convinced of the value in saving these ancient native

This wine is from 5 separate vineyard plots in northwestern Hungary. The vineyards are all worked by hand with minimal intervention at all stages. Sites are harvested separately according to ripeness and blended later. Perhaps the most elegant Blaufränkis

Aromatic green herbs open, with a stewed tomato quality on the finish. The body is medium plus, with light red fruits. Alibernet is a hybrid between Cab Sauv and Alicante Bouschet, a red-fleshed grape. The winemakers also keep bees and grow herbs in an ef

Milan Nestarec has rapidly becomes perhaps the leading figure in Czech winemaking… certainly among natural winemakers there. His Pinot Noir is aged in both old oak & acacia barrels. It’s bright and fresh, but with a subtly complex earthiness which sits pl

A lighter red for fans of Trousseau or Freisa. Like those wines, however, there is still some grip thanks to the inclusion of stems in the press. The winery was founded in 1914; after the fall of the Soviet Union, Gaioz re-established the estate with a ph

The varietal hybrids just keep comin’. Strekov 1075 is one of the few Slovakian producers being imported to the US. Open top fermentation and no intervention lends a wildness to the wine which is balanced by concentrated blue and black berries, fresh thym

Pinot Noir works very well on the volcanic soils of northern Hungary. Aromas of cherries and cranberries burst forth. On the palate, deep red forest berries are complemented by complex spice, delicate wafts of smoke and earth. Very gentle tannins and clea

Vranec is a red variety indigenous to the Balkans. Dark ruby in color, with a robust aroma of dark and sour cherries intertwined with floral notes. On the palate, the fruit is juicy and concentrated with soft and pleasant tannins that add wonderful textur