Montenegrin wine is wine made in the Balkan country of Montenegro.[1] Many Montenegrin vineyards are located in the southern and coastal regions of the country. Montenegrin wines are made from a wide range of grape varieties including Krstač, Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay and Vranac. Other indigenous cultivars include Bioka, Čubrica, Krstač, and Žižak.[2]

Vineyard by Lake Skadar

History

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Viticulture in Montenegro dates back to the Illyrians; relics of wine-making and wine-trading have been found in the necropolis of the coastal city Budva dating back to the 4th century BCE.[2] Tombstones found in Montenegro were decorated with grapevines and wine motifs related to the Dionysian cult.[3] Montenegro is considered the origin of the Kratošija (better known as Zinfandel) and Vranac grape varieties.[4][5] The earliest reference to the Montenegrin variety Kratošija comes from the medieval statute of Budva, written in Italian, and dated 1426-1442 CE.[6] Grape-growing and wine-producing regulations were introduced under the reign of Nicholas I of Montenegro.[citation needed]

Production

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In Montenegro, the Vranac and Kratošija varieties are primarily used for making red wines, whereas Krstač is the dominant variety for white wine.[3] Kratošija was the predominant variety until the phylloxera epidemic.[7] The most prevalent variety, Vranac, represents more than 70% of domestic wine production.[citation needed]

The amount of land in vineyard cultivation has increased significantly throughout the Balkans since 2000, including in Montenegro. Grapes are grown on over 2,800 hectares (28 km2) with a gross production of 22,200 tons in 2017.[2] Per European Union regulations, the Montenegrin wine-producing area is divided into four wine regions and fifteen sub-regions, the most important of which is around Lake Skadar. The other principal region is along the coastal area on the Adriatic Sea.[7]

Trade

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Counterfeit Montenegrin wine brands have circulated in Eastern Europe and the western Balkans; a group of researchers from Serbia, Finland, Montenegro, and the Netherlands have described a system using smart labels to identify genuine bottles and screen out imposters.[8]

Shortly before the Montenegrin parliament ratified the NATO accession treaty, Russia banned imports of Montenegrin wine from the state-owned wine producer Plantaže under claims of elevated levels of metalaxyl, pesticides, and particle plastics.[9] Previously, one-fifth of the country's wine exports went to Russia.[10]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Pajovic-Scepanovic, Radmila; Krstic, Marija; Savkovic, Sanja; Raicevic, Danijela; Popovic, Tatjana (2016-09-30). "Wine Quality in Montenegro". The Journal "Agriculture and Forestry". 62 (3). doi:10.17707/AgricultForest.62.3.19.
  2. ^ a b c Maraš, Vesna; Tello, Javier; Gazivoda, Anita; Mugoša, Milena; Perišić, Mirko; Raičević, Jovana; Štajner, Nataša; Ocete, Rafael; Božović, Vladan; Popović, Tatjana; García-Escudero, Enrique; Grbić, Miodrag; Martínez-Zapater, José Miguel; Ibáñez, Javier (2020-09-14). "Population genetic analysis in old Montenegrin vineyards reveals ancient ways currently active to generate diversity in Vitis vinifera". Scientific Reports. 10 (1): 15000. doi:10.1038/s41598-020-71918-7. ISSN 2045-2322. PMC 7490262. PMID 32929127.
  3. ^ a b Maraš, Vesna (2019-09-04), Morata, Antonio; Loira, Iris (eds.), "Ampelographic and Genetic Characterization of Montenegrin Grapevine Varieties", Advances in Grape and Wine Biotechnology, IntechOpen, doi:10.5772/intechopen.85676, ISBN 978-1-78984-612-6, S2CID 189001228, retrieved 2023-01-23
  4. ^ Pajović Šćepanović, Radmila; Wendelin, Silvia; Raičević, Danijela; Eder, Reinhard (2019-10-01). "Characterization of the phenolic profile of commercial Montenegrin red and white wines". European Food Research and Technology. 245 (10): 2233–2245. doi:10.1007/s00217-019-03330-z. ISSN 1438-2385. S2CID 199653545.
  5. ^ "The great grapevine". Financial Times. 2012-10-12. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  6. ^ MARAŠ, V. (2015). "Origin and characterization of Montenegrin grapevine varieties" (PDF). Vitis. 54: 135–137.
  7. ^ a b Pajovic, R.; Raicevic, D.; Popovic, T.; Sivilotti, P.; Lisjak, K.; Vanzo, A. (2014). "Polyphenolic characterisation of Vranac, Kratosija and Cabernet Sauvignon (Vitis vinifera L. cv.) grapes and wines from different vineyard locations in Montenegro". South African Journal of Enology and Viticulture. 35 (1): 139–148. ISSN 2224-7904.
  8. ^ Popović, Tomo; Krčo, Srdjan; Maraš, Vesna; Hakola, Liisa; Radonjić, Sanja; van Kranenburg, Rob; Šandi, Stevan (2021-06-01). "A novel solution for counterfeit prevention in the wine industry based on IoT, smart tags, and crowd-sourced information". Internet of Things. 14: 100375. doi:10.1016/j.iot.2021.100375. ISSN 2542-6605. S2CID 233949346.
  9. ^ "Defying Russia, Montenegro Finally Joins NATO". VOA. Retrieved 2023-01-23.
  10. ^ Corpădean, Adrian Gabriel (2018). "Assessments and Prospects for the Integration of the West Balkans. The Case of Montenegro". Online Journal Modelling the New Europe (25): 87–105. doi:10.24193/OJMNE.2018.25.04. ISSN 2247-0514.
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