site.btaBoutique Winery Dedicated to Producing Wines of Exceptional Quality, Aroma

BTA will present dozens of Bulgarian wineries in the New BG WINE Leads the Way series ahead of the 9th UN Global Conference on Wine Tourism, which will be hosted in Plovdiv. The forum is organized by the Ministry of Tourism in partnership with the UN World Tourism Organization.

The boutique winery Grivitsa, named after the nearby village in the Pleven region, is dedicated to producing wines of exceptional quality and aroma, chief technologist Nikola Nikolov told the Bulgarian News Agency.

The boutique winery is located 10 km from the city of Pleven, in the heart of an area rich in winemaking history and tradition.

The winery began processing grapes from its own harvests on an industrial scale in 2020. The first vineyards were planted in 2016. All wines are made exclusively from the estate’s vineyards, which span 50 hectares with the winery situated at their centre. Ten hectares are dedicated to Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Riesling, Chardonnay, and Tamyanka. To preserve both consumer health and the integrity of the land and the wine, no pesticides are used. The winery’s annual capacity is around 100 tons, Nikola Nikolov added.

The very first harvest yielded good wines with excellent quality, thanks to several factors. Modern equipment allows for the implementation of modern technology which brings out the full aroma and character of the wines. Because the vineyards are in immediate proximity to the winery, the grapes are not damaged in transport. Their quality can be monitored throughout the growing season, and this makes it possible to harvest at the right moment, ensuring the wine is of good quality. This helps focus production on high quality wines.

In addition to stainless steel fermentation tanks, the winery uses 225-liter French and Bulgarian oak barrels called barriques. These allow for the production of special barrique wines. The wines ferment and age in these barrels. The barrels are also used for the bottling of more developed, oak-aged wines.

All this makes it possible to craft several wine series. The main series emphasizes the fruity character of the wines, made with selected grapes and techniques that highlight varietal aromas.

Another, wax-sealed series includes selected blends of white, rose, and red wines, created from the finest examples of each type.

The third consists of still wines and barrique wines, including Riesling Barrel, Chardonnay Barrel, and Merlot Barrel.

The winery has the equipment to produce sparkling wines, including sparkling Chardonnay and sparkling rose.

From Chardonnay alone, three styles are offered: a natural white, an oak-aged barrique, and a classic sparkling wine.

Grivitsa Winery has earned more than 10 medals at international competitions in Germany, France, and the Balkan Wine Festival. It also participates in the annual wine festival in Pleven and showcases its wines at wine evenings in various locations, with most sales taking place in Bulgaria.

At present, the winery has no plans to expand its vineyard area, focusing instead on optimizing production without purchasing grapes from outside producers.

A restaurant next to the winery is nearing completion. Plans are underway to add guest houses.