Štoka – TeraSel, 2011

This night calls for a selected red wine, ideally coming from our Karst land. And tonight, I want to look with you at a special Teran, one that is pushing the boundaries of this Jerina born wine that Tadej Štoka started producing in 2011.

We are speaking about a wine that has been produced with dried berries of Refosco grapes coming from a 25 years old grassed vineyard growing at an altitude of 280 meters above sea level.

When picking grapes for the Teran wine, the best and healthiest bunches were left on vines to dry. Then they were hand-harvested in the final weekend of October 2011. Berries at the time were naturally already raisins.

After destemming and crushing, or should I say milling, the mash macerated for 20 days in open vats without temperature control. Actually, at this time of the year, Tadej’s major worries were cold temperatures, as they could have prevented its fermentation.

Following maceration, the mash was gently pressed, and the young wine was racked with lees in used French oak barriques for five years. Lees were stirred initially to kick in malolactic fermentation. After the assemblage and short wait in stainless vats for the wine to clarify, it was bottled without filtration.

This wine displays a deep, ruby red colour and dense texture.

Its aromas are refined and intense, ripe. They reveal a palette of scents recalling dried blackberries, blueberries, black currants, black cherries, black olives, dried violets, liquorice, star anise, cinnamon, cloves and chocolate.

The taste is intense, with an oily texture and pronounced warmth. Its ripe freshness blends nicely, forming a balance of flavours with rounded tannins. It is a sumptuously elegant wine with a vigorous body and medium to lasting persistency with a refined and distinctive style.

Now, this Teran, or should I say TeraSel, as its name implies, crafted from the words Teran and Selection – TeraSel is a luscious wine that is now in its best shape and will stay there for a couple of years more. If lucky, you could still find some bottles directly at Tadej. Otherwise, you’ll have to look at the vintage 2013, which is even a step further in the direction of longevity. A bottle costs 30 Eur, and you can write to vinastoka@gmail.com for the order, or call +386 31 361 823.