Vina Antunović: A Taste of the Danube In Your Glass

As we continued to explore the region of Slavonia, during our two-week tour of Croatia, we visited Vina Antunović, whose website states: "The Antunović winery is the first female-owned and established Croatian winery." We were welcomed by the owner, Jasna Antunović Turk, an entrepreneur and economist, who was personable and passionate. Her son, Branimir Turk, a trained sommelier and wine consultant, was also present and he too was very personable and interesting. Since 2020, he has also been involved in winemaking and viticulture for the winery.  

Jasna began by planting the first vineyards, with Graševina and Chardonnay, in 2004, and then constructed a modern winery in 2009. The building, which was initially in a terrible condition, was renovated and intended to represent a traditional Slavonian style winery. The winery is located in a region known as Podunavlje, along the Danube River. 

They currently own 14 hectares of vineyards, having planted 6 hectares this year, and the vineyards consist of 75% white varieties (Graševina, Chardonnay, Sylvaner, Muscat Ottonel and Chasselas) and 25% red varieties (Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon). The winery has a capacity of about 100K liters, roughly 10,000 cases, so it's a small winery. 80% of their wines are consumed within Croatia.  

The soils of their vineyards, alluvial, clay and limestone, are influenced by the Danube River, and this area also has its own unique microclimate. Thus, their wines are said to possess a taste of the Danube, the terroir of this special area. One of the effects is that wines of Antunović commonly possess an element of minerality, which is definitely noticeable in their wines. 

As you can see, the building is aesthetically pleasing, with a rustic ambiance, and it's also welcoming and homey. It reminds you of a prior time period, when matters were simpler, and food and drink took a central position. It was certainly a fine place to conduct a wine tasting.  

On the table were plates of home-made Fish Pâté, made with fish from the Danube, and it was delicious, smeared on some fresh bread rolls. Flavorful, spiced well, and with a pleasing taste of the river. 

We began our tasting with the 2021 Vina Antunović Rosé, which was a blend of Pinot Noir, Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. With a 13% ABV, it possessed a nice pink color and an alluring, fruity aroma. On the palate, it was fresh and fruity, crisp and refreshing, with bright flavors of strawberry and cherry, subtle floral notes, and a backbone of minerality. A very pleasing Rosé.

The 2021 Vina Antunović Graševina, with a 12.5% ABV, also possessed an appealing, fruity aroma, and on the palate it was clean and crisp, with tasty flavors of green apple and subtle pear notes, as well as a backbone of minerality. Refreshing and pleasing, with a fairly lengthy finish. This would be excellent paired with seafood, although it can be enjoyed on its own as well.

The 2017 Vina Antunović Graševina Tradition was once known as Premium, but the name was changed to better indicate their objective to showcase their terroir and the nature of the grape. With a 12% ABV, this wine was aged in large Slavonian oak barrels for about 13 months. The wine was taken out of the barrels when they felt it was ready, more by instinct than intention, so the time in barrel can vary year to year. Jasna mentioned that Graševina produces age-worthy wines, although it is more sensitive than Chardonnay. They also never filter their Graševina. Jasna stated that her love, or even obsession, was Graševina. This wine is a very limited edition, of only 3000 bottles, and each bottle is numbered.

I found the wine to be more aromatic than the previous Graševina, and on the palate it was rounder, with a creamier mouthfeel. The fruit flavors, apple, pear and citrus, were more subtle with more pronounced floral and spice elements. There was a touch of salinity as well, especially on the lengthy finish. Complex and interesting, compelling and delicious, this wine certainly showcases the potential of Graševina. Would love to see how well this wine ages over the years. Highly recommended. 

The 2017 Vina Antunović Chardonnay Sur Lie, with a 13% ABV, is also a limited edition wine of only 4600 bottles. Jasna mentioned that she sees Chardonnay as a masculine grape, one she must firmly control, which is the opposite of the more feminine Graševina. The two grapes form a type of yin/yang. Jasna doesn't release her Chardonnay when it's young, believing it needs at least 2-3 years before release. In general, it spends about 18 months in oak, mostly Slavonian with a touch of Hungarian oak. The wine has a pleasant richness to it, with tasty notes of apple and citrus, with a spicy aspect, which doesn't overwhelm the fruit. It is complex, with a streak of minerality and a long finish.

We went down into the wine cellar, to continue our tasting, and you can see Jasna, with her son Branimir to her right.

The wine cellar is beautiful, with fascinating mosaics on the walls. We stood around a table in the middle of the room, to enjoy our final wine of the tasting.

The Vina Antunović Jubliea Reserve is a rather unique multi-vintage wine, a blend of 2011 Zeleni Sylvanac (Sylvaner), 2014 Chardonnay and 2016 Graševina. It's a limited edition wine, of only 2450 bottles, and has a 12.5% ABV. Jasna stated that it is a "meditative wine" and that you "Have the Danube in your glass."  It was certainly a fascinating wine, complex and delicious, with flavors of apple, stone fruit and citrus, a streak of minerality, good acidity, spice notes, and a lengthy, pleasing finish. There was so much going on in the glass, and it was all well-balanced. 

They also own a wine cat and dog, and the cat is rather old, and just looking at him you get that impression. They were both very friendly.

After our tasting, we walked down to the shore of the Danube, to have lunch. 

The Danube seemed very calm at this point, and there were paths so you could walk along the shore if you so desired.

Of course we enjoyed some delicious river fish for lunch, including pike, perch, and catfish. The fish went very well with the Antunović Graševina.

And dessert was Palačinke, Croatian crepes, with ice cream. Such a fitting ending to lunch. 

Vina Antunović produces some excellent wines, driven by terroir and respect for the varietals. Jasna's vision is inspiring, and it was a real pleasure to meet her and her son. My love for Graševina continued to grow, and it seems clear that it has so much potential. If you find yourself in the area, I'd highly recommend you try to arrange a visit to the winery.