Macedonian wine is not new. It has mostly just stayed at home. The grapes with the longest history there are not ones you meet on a UK supermarket shelf, so most people arrive at them with no reference point at all.
This is a plain guide. What the grapes are, how they taste, and which bottle to reach for.
The grapes
Smederevka
The white workhorse. It is the leading white grape of North Macedonia, roughly sixty per cent of everything white planted there. Tropical and stone fruit over zesty citrus, a green apple edge, and a bitter-sour finish. Salads, grilled fish, roast chicken. Smederevka.
Temjanika
The aromatic one. Elderflower and acacia first, then grape, lime and a little gooseberry. If Sauvignon Blanc is your usual glass, this is that end of the shelf. Good as an aperitif, good with goat's cheese. Temjanika Luda Mara.
Kratošija
The same grape as Primitivo and Zinfandel. The DNA was confirmed at UC Davis in 2001, and it drinks the way that suggests. Redcurrant, cherry and brambly berries, warm and gently spicy. Roast meats, pulled pork, moussaka. Kratošija.
Vranec
The red we build the reds around. Blackberry and black cherry, then blueberry, pomegranate and dried herbs. Firm tannins and a long finish. Closest to Malbec if you need a comparison. It wants food with char on it. Vranec Luda Mara.
The one everybody in Macedonia knows
T'ga za Jug is semi-dry, so there is a real touch of sweetness in it. Overripe sour cherry and raspberry, a little raisin, and a long finish that leans towards treacle. The sweetness is not added. The fruit is picked late and grown between 350 and 550 metres, and altitude plus a late harvest is what concentrates the sugar. If you find most reds too sharp, start here.
The blends
The Alexandria Premium Cuvée wines are the international end of the range, and the easiest place to bring somebody in.
- Red. Redcurrant and cherry up front, sweet spice and vanilla behind, soft tannins. Roast veal, grilled pork, aged hard cheeses.
- White. Chardonnay with a little Rhine Riesling. White flowers and pear, then citrus and wet stone, a long lemon-cream finish. Mussels, sea perch, a light creamy pasta.
- Rosé. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir. Fuller and redder in fruit than a pale Provence rosé. Made for eating outside.
The estate wines
Babuna White is Albariño, Chardonnay and Viognier. Intense white peach at the centre, citrus around it, cut clean. It has a natural affinity with cream sauces.
Babuna Red has Shiraz in the blend and you can taste it. Blackberry, cherry and baked plum first, then violet underneath. Dark and deep, with enough acidity to keep it lively.
The two we would open last
Bela Voda White is half Chardonnay, pressed straight into new French barrique and aged there for eighteen months. Pear and white peach, then orange peel and vanilla, buttery and long. Sea bass, roast chicken, veal in a mushroom sauce.
Barovo Red is grown and picked off three hectares of volcanic rock and spends eighteen months in new French oak. Prune, sour cherry and blackberry, then vanilla and chocolate, with pepper and anise. Lamb or prime rib. Give it a big glass and a little air.
If you would rather not choose
The cases do the choosing. The Introduction is six bottles across every colour. The Reds is six reds. Fresh Whites is six whites. The Table is three red and three white, and it is the one we would put on a dinner table.