Wine Review: Wines from Exotic Places

Wine is produced all over the world. Some areas are relatively new to wine while some places have a long history of winemaking, but are still not easy to find in most markets like the four wines I’m reviewing here. Hence, I’m still labeling these wines as being from “exotic,” lesser-known wine regions. All are less than $25.

Georgia (the country) is certainly a region with history but lacks current notoriety. In fact, the Caucasus region is the oldest known winemaking region in the world dating back to 6,000 BCE. In addition, a lot of the “new” winemaking trends such as natural wines, orange wines and using clay amphora (qvevri in Georgia) have already been done for thousands of years in Georgia.  The wine I found from Georgia follows these historic traditions of underground qvevri lined with beeswax and other natural techniques using one of Georgia’s most popular grapes, Saperavi. Saperavi is a teinturier grape, meaning both the flesh and skins are red. It creates a wine so dark that it’s often labeled as “black” wine in Georgia. 

Another old winemaking region which dates back at least 2,500 years is Croatia. Two-thirds of their production is white wine. A lot of their whites come from the inland, but their best wines (red and white) are from the coast. Although many people may know Zinfandel or Primitivo, they don’t know that they were originally Tribidrag or Crljenak from Croatia. The wine I’m tasting is made from their most popular red, Plavac Mali, a descendent of Tribidrag. 

Bulgaria has an equally long  history of winemaking dating back to the Thracians around 3,000 years ago. It was once one of the largest winemaking regions in the world, providing wine for the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc until the fall of Communism. Bulgaria is known more for making fruity red wines. Although much of the wine is made from international varietals like Cabernet, I found a local varietal, Gamza (Kadarka), from the Danube River Plains in the north of the country. This is my first Bulgarian wine.

Lastly, I found a wine from Mexico. Although it’s not well-known for wine, the Spanish brought wine there before they arrived in Chile or California. In fact, the producer I found, Casa Madero, is the oldest winery in all of the Americas, founded in 1597. However, they currently use popular international varietals like Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot. It’s located in the Parras Valley in north central Mexico in Coahuila, which is also rare because 90% of Mexican wines come from Baja California. 

If you’d like to learn more about wines from exotic locations, one resource is Exotic Wine Travel. They have articles, books and videos on wines from lesser-known places like Hungary, Georgia, Croatia, Turkey and Armenia. 

Tasting Notes    

2019 Pheasant’s Tears Saperavi Georgia

This is a project from an American, Swedes and Georgians in effort to preserve Georgian ancient wine traditions. Their winery and restaurant are located in Sighnaghi in the Kakheti wine region. The name of the winery comes from an old local saying that only the best wines could cause pheasants to cry tears of joy when drinking it. 

Dark, glass-staining color. At the moment the nose is rather mute, but you get dark fruit, smoky meaty notes. The palate is relatively medium-light in feel  given the dense color with good acidity to go with the dark fruit and a touch of black tea. Yet fairly tannic. It has potential to get better given the tannins, acidity and current austere mood. 89+

2015 Zlatan Otok Plavac Mali (Barrique) Hvar Dalmatia Croatia

This wine comes from Dalmatia on Hvar Island. 12-18 months in old and new barrique. Rather light transparent purple color. The nose is interesting with a little earth, smoke, meatiness and spice. Cinnamon. The palate is dark and red fruited with medium light tannins and acidity.  It also has a savory spicy side to it. Well-balanced with medium length. Not the most powerful wine but there’s complexity. 90

2016 Bulgariana Gamza Danube River Plains 

13% alcohol. Nose starts off rather mute and oaky. The oak subsides to show some fruit and herbs, but it’s still not the most powerful nose. The palate is rather generic without much length or distinction. Medium-light everything. Nothing offensive or over the top, but nothing outstanding. OK as a weeknight pizza wine. 84

2018 Casa Madero 3V Valle de Parras México

The 3V was originally developed to serve on Mexico’s Airlines, but they now sell some commercially too. 12 months in French and American oak. It’s a blend of Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Tempranillo. The nose reminds of many Chilean wines with  green peppercorn and coffee to go with ripe dark fruit. The palate is rather simple with dark fruit and spice but no hard edges and low acidity. It won’t clash with Mexican food since the low tannins and moderate alcohol won’t accentuate the spicy heat too much, and it should go well with meaty dishes. 88