Tradition continues. In December, we always summon impressions of the year that is gently coming to a close and pick events that marked the year on the local wine scene. A chronicle of Serbian wine world... So, again, here are 10 events that we will remember in 2017. The order is not determined by importance of the event, because they are all equally important for spreading a positive image about Serbian wine scene. And Vinopedia has been monitoring progress and contributing to development of the wine scene in Serbia for 7 years.

1. #ProkupacDay - Prokupac swept through Serbia again on October 14th. Winemakers, wine consumers, bloggers, sommeliers, café owners and wine merchants stood together to celebrate Prokupac and Serbian wines and vineyards. In more than 100 locations, Prokupac was celebrated. Consumers drank it in Switzerland, Germany, etc. Prokupac Day was celebrated in Amsterdam, Kiev, Banjaluka, Budapest... Social networks were buzzing with activitiy. Prokupac loving crowd swarmed to the Prokupac Salon, all seats at Prokupac conference were sold out, fully booked one week prior to start of the conference. About 40 #winelovers from 17 countries all over the world joined us this year in Belgrade and left home after the event enthusiastic about what they saw, eager to spread the story of Prokupac, Serbian wines and terroirs further. They saw during these days what local winemakers from Vojvodina, Šumadija, Vranje, Negotinska Krajina and Tri Morave are doing. Definitely, Prokupac has returned to Serbian vineyards in grand style and this is testified by the fact that winemakers are increasingly planting it throughout Serbia. On Prokupac Day, the first white wine made from Prokupac was presented by Milan's Cellar (Milanov Podrum), the newcomer (100% Prokupac) from Yotta Winery (Župa), the first Prokupac (100%) from Kosovo and Metohija presented by Antić Winery, the first Prokupac from Vrnjačka Banja presented by Grabak winery... And thanks to Prokupac Day, Serbian Prokupac landed on pages of Jancis Robinson's website.

2. Sparkling Smederevka - Aleksić Winery presented the first sparkling wine BISER made from local  Smederevka grape (traditional method). Thus, we're slowly removing the stigma from Smederevka, our local grape variety, which has been badly reputed as spritzer wine in the period of Socialism. Janko's Cellar persists in demonstrating that Smederevka can show much more if proper care is given to it. Aleksić Winery from Vranje, with its sparkling wine, contributed to further affirmation of Smederevka and showed that we still need to explore all possibilities of local varieties.

3. Oskar Maurer - The year 2017 can be considered the year when Oscar Maurer returned to the wine scene of Serbia. In previous years, Oskar Maurer's winery has caught much more attention beyond the borders of Serbia than here. It was difficult to find wine shops in Belgrade where you could buy natural wines from Maurer Winery. This year, Maurer's wines arrived to the top restaurants of Belgrade such as Iris Restaurant. This was followed by greater presence at local fairs and wine festivals. Growing presence in Belgrade wine shops could be a sign that Serbia finally understood importance of Oskar's energy which inspired a gang of young winemakers who followed his steps, exploring potential of natural wines and autochthonous grape varieties.

4. Seduša - Šijački Winery from Banoštor presented wine made from Seduša, a grape variety preserved from extinction. The story about Seduša began 15 years ago, when the first 150 vines were marked and planted in the nursery vineyard in Banoštor, a village near the Danube, on the northern slopes of Fruška Gora (Srem wine region). They worked hard to obtain today's 2,500 vines and they will continue to expand Seduša vineyards. Šijački Winery gave their contribution to building Serbia's wine identity because the book Wine Grapes (J. Robinson, J. Harding, J. Vouillamoz) will also list in the next edition Seduša as an autochthonous Serbian variety.

5. WSET Diploma has arrived in Serbia - Last year, we highlighted emergence of two local WSET program providers as one of the top wine events in Serbia. This year, we went a step further. Aleksandar Duković, editor-in-chief of WineStyle magazine, has obtained WSET Level 4 Diploma and became the first member of the Austrian Wine Academy from Serbia. This is a good sign that our wine scene is making progress and that in the coming period, we can expect more participants from Serbia who will invest their efforts and money in order to acquire this prestigious diploma. As a result, our wine scene will grow mature as well.

6. A Serbian wine taster at IWC (International Wine Challenge) in London - This year, for the first time ever, our wine critic and journalist Igor Luković represented Serbia at this year's International Wine Challenge in London. We often think about competitions from the perspective of wineries which submit their wines for evaluation. However, our representatives among judges at international wine competitions also contribute to perception of Serbia as a wine country. Therefore, it is vitally important to make ourselves present at global wine competitions as much as possible in order to contribute to spreading Serbian wine story.

7. Expansion of Serbian vineyards - Definitely, this year we notice positive trend of further expansion of vineyards. This involves not only large wineries such as Kovačević on Fruška Gora and Aleksić in Vranje, but also numerous small wineries which manage to find resources to expand their vineyards and create better foundations for Serbia's future in the wine world. An investment for the future.

8. Vožd and Dionis - This year, our researchers from the Faculty of Agriculture in Belgrade and Institute of Fruit Growng and Viticulture in Sremski Karlovci have finalized extensive work on creation of new grape varieties. In May 2017, two new grape varieties were officially registered in Serbia: Vožd (cross of Prokupac and Začinak) and Dionis (cross of Cabernet Franc and Panonija). We hope that in the coming period, Serbian wineries will find commercial interest to plant these varieties in their vineyards, explore their potential and bring wines from these varieties to the market in the future.

9. Palić Wine Marathon - Similar to more famous wine regions around the world, Serbia got this year in September its first wine marathon on Palić Lake. Online wine portal http://www.vino.rs/ organized a wine run through Palić vineyards. A special feature of the wine marathon are wine stops in the wine cellars and carnival atmosphere. Thus, Serbia joined the group of famous wine regions around the world that organize wine marathons. This idea was well-received among Serbs, who are well-known for their competitive sport spirit. Hence also Župa Wine Marathon which was held in October in Župa as part of Prokupac Day celebration. Župa Wine Marathon was organized by NGO Domovina.

10. The best Portugieser in the world - Kiš Winery from Sremski Karlovci won the award for the best Portugieser at the competition Portugieser du Monde in Pecs (Hungary) and contributed to better recognition of this variety on the market.

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