This year's WineOS, the Osijek Wine Salon, offered winelovers an exceptional program of workshops and guided tastings. Certainly, one that aroused incredible interest was the presentation of wines from Brkić Winery.  for which the ticket was sought more was a workshop dedicated to wines from Brkic Winery. Sufficient to add that 40 people attended the tasting instead of originally planned 20.

By all accounts, it was a rare opportunity for a vertical tasting of Mjesečar wine. Josip Brkić from Čitluk (Herzegovina) has already attained the status of a cult winemaker across former-Yugoslavia territory. A few years ago, during my stay in Slovenia, I spoke with Angela Muir MW about wine industry developments in former Yugoslavia ... I still remember her fascination with Herzegovina winemakers who made a great rise in quality of their wines over the last few years compared to all other countries of former Yugoslavia...

The star of the tasting is Mjesečar. Josip started his story of biodynamics and Mjesečar with a remark that his wine was not made to appeal to consumers or to satisfy prevailing taste of wine drinkers. His intention is merely to transfer grapes to a glass without any subsequent modifications and to reflect features of the vintage in wine. Josip applies principles of biodynamic production. He uses only copper and sulfur in the vineyard. Wine is made without use of electrical appliances as it has been made for centuries. Berries are destemmed by hand, with great care not to damage the berries. The berries are then placed into a barrel and spontaneous fermentation may begin. Cap manipulation is always done in accordance with lunar calendar, hence the resulting wine is called Mjesečar. The same principle can be observed during high tide and low tide alterations. The Moon's gravity stirs the wine in the rising phase when the Moon is ascending from the new Moon to the full Moon. In the waning phase, when the Moon goes from the full Moon to the new Moon, it is exerting gravitational pull so the cap falls to the bottom. Josip then needs to open and stir contents of the barrel. This is followed by aging and  subsequent bottling - no filtration, the only tool is a rubber hose. The only sulfur used in the winemaking process is sulfur from a vineyard that has been introduced on berries.

Concerning the choice of grape varieties, Josip Brkić is entirely dedicated to local varieties that have been thriving in Herzegovina for centuries - Žilavka and Blatina.

Interestingly, even when selecting barrels, Josip applies the rule "The Best Option is Local". The barrels are made of local Bosnian oak from the area of ​​Bugojno. In the basement, each barrel is of a different size, depending on the available size of wood planks. Most barrels prevailingly range between 180 and 250 liters in volume.

Mjesečar 2016 - Lush long skin-contact wine made from Žilavka. The nose is soft, complex aromas of yellow fruit, white peach, chamomile, thyme, elderberry flower, candied fruit, propolis, citrus ... Already at the first encounter with Mjesečar, I am fascinated by the freshness and elegance that this wine possesses, which can often be missing in wines of this style. This may be owing to the fact that he puts whole berries in the barrel ...

Mjesečar 2015 - More mature impression on the nose, intense patina. Hints of dried fruits, Mediterranean herbs accompanied with notes of almonds, grapefruit. Full body, round mouthfeel, excellent acidity guarantees long life.

Similar to several other winemakers from this region, Josip Brkic entered the realm of biodynamics and organic grape growing thanks to Slovenian winemakers. And then he built on his experience.

Mjesečar 2012 - Wonderful patina, the nose dominated by chamomile, tea leaves, thyme, spices, orange peel. Tannins add to wine's structure in the mouth, but still the overall smoothness and harmony prevail ... No harshness.

Mjesečar 2011 - The predominant herbal-spicy aromatic profile, multi-layered complex aromas... Wine for contemplation. Sublime wine beauty. Year after year, Mjesečar retains its elegance and freshness. By no means flat or overripe. A long, exciting finish. My favorite vintage of Mjesečar.

Mjesečar 2008 - Mature, noble wine. Linden tea, basil, dried fruit, orange peel, almond. An amazing freshness in the mouth, the citrusy note lingers on the palate, imparting freshness, playfully accompanied with hints of peach, orange… Traces of slight pleasant sweetness which Žilavka develops with age.

Limousine 2006 - In the last few years, I have had an opportunity to taste a lot of great wines from the countries of former Yugoslavia. However, at the first sip of Limousine 2006, I have no dilemma that this is one of the best wines from the region of former Yugoslavia. Then it becomes clear how truthful the sentence "I would give all fortune to re-create this wine" is. Josip whispered it while the attendees awaited to taste in their glasses a piece of wine history in the Balkans.

The harvest in 2006 was mediocre so there were no high expectations from the resulting wine. Josip had at disposal a 250-liter barrel made from Slavonian oak in the cellar. Following the advice of Slovenian winemaker Stojan Ščurek, he managed to get some of the grapes dehydrated on the vine in the vineyard a few days before the harvest, and thus obtained necessary concentration and sugar. He processed it together with other grapes. Unlike Mjesečar, whole berries were not used for this wine. Spontaneous fermentation without temperature control, natural yeasts. After a while, they thought the resulting wine was flawed because it was quite special, different. But during a tasting session with Aleš Kristančič, Aleš was convinced that it would become "the great wine of Herzegovina". And he wasn't wrong.

And there it was now, in front of us. The last magnum bottle of Limousine 2006. It is hard to put into words that complexity, the layering that reveals on the nose. Discreet petroleum notes give the wine its classic beauty and seriousness. But, as with all Brkić wines, the freshness as a contrast to concentrated aromatic profile dominated by spicy-herbal notes still persists. Full body, a finish that lasts ... and lasts ... and you don't want that impression to disappear. This is how I imagine the drink of the gods in ancient mythology…

Crveni Mjesečar 2008 - (varietal composition: 100% Blatina) Josip puts a smile on his face and explains that he once sold this bottle and then he bought it back for his archive. On the nose, the wine reminds me of an aged Xinomavro with its aromas of sun-dried tomatoes, ripe cherries, earthiness, black olives, leather, fine Mediterranean herbs. Developed, soft. There are still traces of red forest fruit in the mouth with plenty of tertiary notes. Controlled power and balance in wine. Everything fits perfectly without edges, without spoiling the overall impression ...

And while we're finally tasting Greda 2008, my thoughts seem to wander... It's hard to go back to reality after a wine such as Brkić's Limousine... After this vertical tasting, it is clear to everyone that the essence of winemaking lies in simplicity and naturalness. All Brkić wines show the same superior line of natural harmony.

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The WineOS Festival was organized on January 11th-12th, 2019 for the fifth time in Osijek. The festival brought together more than 70 exhibitors from Croatia and neighboring countries and provided an opportunity for visitors to discover new eno-gastro experiences.

(13/02/2019)

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