Colnar – Modra frankinja, 2017

Let’s head to Dolenjska, to the Colnar family tonight. We’ll look at their expression of Slovenia’s autochthonous variety, Blaufränkisch, or as it is called here Modra frankinja. A wine with 24 months of maturation in oak.

Hand-harvested grapes were destemmed and crushed. The mash was macerated with alcoholic fermentation for 16 days and was left on skins at controlled temperatures for a total of 42 days. After a gentle pressing, the young wine was racked with fine lees into large tino barrels for six months, conducting almost complete malolactic conversion. Finally, it was moved into a combination of new and used barrique barrels, where it matured for close to three years. After bottling, it was left to age until a couple of months ago, when it finally made it to the market.

This Modra frankinja displays a translucent ruby red colour with a dense texture.

Its bouquet is intense, inviting. We perceive black cherry, black currant, even mulberry. They are followed by aromas of purple and hibiscus, as well as wood, vanilla, chocolate, caramel that are followed by black pepper and forest undergrowth, with a slightly smoky touch at the end.

The wine is dry, with softness and reasonable warmth. At the same time, it is fresh and mineral, with grippy tannins. We detect both tannins from grapes and wood and are still rounding off. An intense, full-bodied wine with a lasting, elegant persistency in which blackberries, smoke and black pepper are mainly expressed.

A wine that has the potential to evolve for the next five years and with a price tag of approximately 12 Eur should sparkle your interest. You can order it at their website, or Vina Posavja.