Sweet spot

I have been a fan of Slovenia and its wines since visiting the country some 10 years ago. Not only is the country exceptionally beautiful and the people very friendly, but the wines were so much better than I had expected.

There was still plenty of evidence of the old communist system, with large co-operatives making fairly average wine, but here and there a few showed real potential. I also came across plenty of small private estates, many making superb individual wine.

Even though it is a small country (a quarter of the size of Ireland with a population of two million), there are a number of distinct wine regions. The wine-production areas can be divided very generally into three areas: Primorska, running alongside Italy and the Mediterranean, is the best known internationally and tends to produce wines richer and more textured in style. It is here that you will find most of the country’s red wines.

Posavje, which runs along the southern border with Croatia, tends to make the lightest wines, often made into (very good) sparkling wine.

To the east, Podravje is the largest predominantly white wine-producing region. Here the wines tend to be lighter and fresher, not unlike their Austrian counterparts.

Almost 75 per cent of production is white wine and a great deal of it is still consumed locally. Before the break- up of Yugoslavia, much of the wine produced was medium dry and inoffensive. Some of it even made its way to Ireland. I can still remember the Lutomer Laski riesling that my father would plonk on the table when I was growing up. This is the style still favoured by the more traditional producers, who often sell all of their unbottled wine at the cellar door.

To the east, the main grape varieties are sípon (furmint in Hungary), Iaski rizling (Welschriesling) and Renski riesling (Rhine riesling). Primorska, which borders Friuli, shares the ribolla gialla variety and the red refosco with its neighbour. Here as elsewhere you will find chardonnay and sauvignon as well as the cabernets and merlot. There is also increasing interest in Blaufränkisch, a variety that has seen a revival in Austria.

When Slovenia joined the European Union in 2004 and the Celtic tiger was in full flow here, efforts were made to interest us in its wines, but we have been slow to appreciate eastern European wines generally. They can be complicated, but I suspect that we are unwilling to part with much money for unproven wines.

The best wines of Slovenia, Hungary and other eastern European countries have a ready market at home as well as in nearby Austria, Italy and Germany.

However, given the limited production, Slovenia is unlikely to ever be a major force in the world of wine.

Earlier this year, Liam and Sinéad Cabot, who have always flown the flag for Slovenia, arranged a tasting for importers interested in trying out the wines. The results have been very promising.

Credit should go to Dunnes Stores for taking the risk by importing three wines, all of which are pretty good. The white (Blooming 2012, €12 down to €9) is a lovely off-dry but refreshing wine and will probably feature as a wine of the week later in the summer. The sparkling sauvignon is better than many New Zealand versions and is very keenly priced. See below for the red wine.

Wines on the Green on Dawson Street already has a well-chosen eclectic range of wines and the addition of a few very good Slovenian wines merely enhances the selection.

Cabot & Co, in conjunction with On the Grapevine in Dalkey, has just taken delivery of a fascinating white wine from Miro in addition to the red below. See below for stockists. Both also offer an excellent Slovenian sparkling wine and the fresh dry whites of Verus, which have featured here before.

Marks & Spencer, which has one of the best ranges of eastern European and Mediterranean wines, stock a pinot grigio from Slovenia, along with several Croatian wines. I also tried three Slovenian wines through Cases in Galway, one of which features below. These are imported by Ales Jevtic of Slovine wines.

If you are still looking for somewhere to go this summer, I can highly recommend Slovenia as a destination. Failing that, I would certainly suggest you try out a few of the wines below.

jwilson@irishtimes.com