Danube near Erdut byJan Pešula – Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0
The Traminac Mirisavi Ledena Berba 2012 from the Erdut winery, which we tasted, was a gift from our good friend Babs, who moved to Croatia for love a little over 30 years ago and still lives near Zagreb.
The town of Erdut, where the winery of the same name has been located since 1730, lies in eastern Croatia, in the Slavonia region, within the Hrvatska Podunavlje wine-growing area, almost directly on the border with Serbia. In contrast to the predominantly Mediterranean climate in the wine-growing regions of the Croatian coast, the climate there is more continental. This allows for the production of ice wine in very cold winters – indicated on the label by the name Ledena Berba.
The Erdut winery cultivates 450 hectares of its own vineyards on gently south-facing, alluvial soils at an altitude of 130 to 190 meters on the slopes of the Dalj Mountains, directly on and surrounded by the Danube, which makes Erdut a kind of peninsula. White grape varieties dominate the vineyards, accounting for 75% of the plantings, especially Graševina, also known as Welschriesling. Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Traminer, and Riesling are also cultivated, as well as the red grape varieties Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Zweigelt, and Frankovka.
Traminac translates to Traminer, but it’s not entirely clear which specific Traminer variety it refers to. However, since in Croatia the term Traminac Crveni (red Traminer) is most commonly used, it’s likely that the darkest-pigmented Traminer variety, Gewürztraminer, is meant. The wine paired perfectly with the Caramelchöpfli made according to the recipe of Swiss three-Michelin-starred chef Andreas Caminada.
2012 Traminac Mirisavi Ledena Berba, Vina Erdut (Tasted wines)
Medium amber in the glass. On the nose, a touch of honey, rounded, with delicate pineapple notes. On the palate, exotic rum-soaked fruits, very ripe pineapple, a hint of hazelnut, good sweetness with a lovely, mild acidity, a very good finish with fine notes of milk chocolate. A very good wine.