Beyond being the wine fair everyone wants to see and be seen at, Vinistra has become the place where wine trends are unquestionably set.
This weekend the Žatika hall in Poreč hosted the 32nd edition of the Vinistra fair, attended by sommeliers, hospitality professionals, distributors, chefs and countless wine lovers from every part of Croatia and abroad.
This was the first serious “trial run” for the young Malvazija Istarska (Istria’s flagship white), as well as an opportunity to showcase aged wines. The direction in which the young Malvazija is developing is the right one; the wines are ever more honest, and the growers have realised it pays to play their strongest cards, so aromatics and freshness dominate. The 2024 vintage was clearly very demanding, calling for maximum attention and timely cellar interventions, which the winemakers largely handled well. The 2026 vintage will certainly be defined by high freshness, fine aromatics and slightly lower extract. The Terans keep getting better, and it is clear that growers have understood there is no sense in bringing insufficiently ready wines to market, so it was a pleasure to taste the reds that are part of Istria’s wine identity. There was a broad offering of wines from outside Istria too, and the collective stands of Bregovita Hrvatska, Graševina Croatica and the Ljubuški Vinari association, all of whom presented themselves successfully, deserve a special mention.
A new generation of winemakers was introduced
This year’s Vinistra turned towards the future, as seen in the presentation of Gen V, a new generation of Istrian winemakers who grew up among the vineyards and cellars and are gradually taking over the family businesses, shaping a contemporary Istrian wine story. The idea of Gen V was born last year, and over the past few months we began working seriously on gathering the younger generation of wine people within Vinistra. Those in their twenties and thirties who represent the new wave of Istrian winemaking – the children of winemakers, who work actively in the family wineries and are fully devoted to this craft, noted Gianna Kozlović, president of Vinistra’s newest branch, adding that the name came about entirely spontaneously. V for vino (wine) and Vinistra. Most of us belong to Generation Z, and we wanted to show that wine is not only a tradition we inherit but something we want to keep developing and building. These young people presented their signature wines not at their own stands but in the wine bar in the central part of the hall, where one could taste the wines of Gianna Kozlović, Marko Rossi, Piero Licul of the Fuhtar winery, Tim Withfield of the Clai winery, Dominik Anđelini, Lari Juričić, Matteo Poletti, Kevin Mušković of the DeFratta winery, Katarina Benazić, Sanjin Pilato, Lucija Deklić and Sajmon Valenta.
Photo: Merlo De Graia
