site.btaCzech Investors Develop Winemaking Traditions at Rosalea Winery in Harmanli

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 Rosalea Winery, created by Czech investors Petr Beletz and Vladislav Winter, is one of the newest wineries in Harmanli. The two wine connoisseurs initially came to Bulgaria in 2011 to found an IT company, but were impressed by the terroir and the wines in the Sakar area. So in 2016, they bought a plot of land in the Harmanli village of Shishmanovo and planted a vineyard there, the winery's oenologist Ekaterina Gargova told BTA.

The winery works entirely with its own production of wine varieties, including Chardonnay, Cabernet Sauvignon and Mavrud. In 2022, new vines were planted from mainly local varieties, such as Dimyat, Cherven Misket and Pamid. There is also Pomoriiski Biser, which is a Bulgarian complex-resistant variety, created after a cross between Cherven Misket and Riesling, an old white grape originating from Germany, noted Gargova, who has been an oenologist at the winery since its founding in 2020, when the vines from the massif in the village of Shishmanovo began to bear fruit.

Regarding the taste qualities of the wine produced, she pointed out that the uniqueness comes from the terroir, adding that the human factors also play a role. "In Harmanli, there are traditions in winemaking, the region is favourable. There is a rich variety of soils. In the Shishmanovo massif, diversity is found even just in one row", Gargova emphasized. The development of the grapes is also affected by the influence of the Mediterranean climate and the large number of warm days, she said.

Winemaking is one of the industries in which production remains quite traditional, Gargova pointed out, noting that in 2025, the winery was re-equipped under a European project. "No matter how many innovations are introduced, in winemaking there is manual labor and, above all, the personal attitude of the people involved in it. Our team is small and although we are different specialists, we are together both in the vineyard and in the winery. That is why the classics are preserved more in small productions," she stressed.

Every year, the winery increases production a little because they are preparing for the moment when the vineyards will enter full fruiting. For the oenologist, the most emotional are the turbulent moments at the start of the autumn campaign. "The moment when the grapes are received, the start of fermentation, when the juice begins to slightly carbonate and the aroma begins to emerge. There are many dynamic moments in this season and I like that in my work," Gargova commented.

The winery produces two main ranges. According to the winery's sales representative, Maria Hodzheva, the baseline series comprises lighter, everyday wines that do not age in oak barrels, while the "Writer's Wine" series comprises pure varietal wines that do age in high-class barrels. A total of 18,000 bottles were produced across all series in 2024.

Rosalea Winery is a member of the local Wines of Sakar winemakers association in Harmanli. It will host one of the seasonal wine festivals of the association in December.