Romania’s winemaker Cotnari SA has won a grand gold medal at the International Wine Championship in Quebec Cotnari SA manager Constantin Deleanu said Monday “Being crowned with a Grand Gold Medal at such important a competition is the highest distinction any winemaker dreams of,” Deleanu told journalists at a press conference Deleanu said two more gold medals went to Chateau Cotnari vintage 2012 and Grasa de Cotnari 1992, while Grasa de Cotnari 2005 won a silver medal.  The International Wine Championship was created in 1983 and is held in Quebec under the high aegis of the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), the International Union of Oenologists (UIOE) and of the International Federation of Wines and Spirits (VINOFED). The jury was made up of 39 members from around the world who tasted over 1,700 samples during four days of competition Competing in the championship were the most prestigious vineyards from countries such as France We use cookies for keeping our website reliable and secure providing social media features and to analyse how our website is used In partnership with Wines of Romania Vines are grown in just about every corner of Romania a testament both to the diversity of the country’s landscapes and to wine’s central place in Romanian culture Discover this fascinating tapestry and get to know the producers representing each of the regions and DOCs at Prowein 2024 It’s not hard to see why Transylvania’s fairytale scenery and rustic charm have captured so many imaginations set among fields still worked with donkeys make it an alluring holiday destination for travellers seeking a trip back in time: brown bears and wolves still roam its dark forests Transylvania Plateau also offers many attractions ringed by the horseshoe-shaped Carpathian mountains Its altitude (up to 500m above sea level) makes the area cooler than many parts of Romania – a factor that explains the historical focus on white grapes Late ripening and cool climate varieties thrive here; Fetească Regală Among its most important appellations are Jidvei DOC where the cooling effects of its 300m elevation are compounded by two nearby rivers (Târnava Mică and Târnava Mare) Jidvei is a key Transylvanian wine producer for both its history and its size making it Romania’s largest vineyard holder and one of the biggest in Europe under single ownership Jidvei has become a beacon of innovation and education by introducing cutting edge technology and creating the first private school of viticulture and oenology in Romania Jidvei owns Romania’s first – and one of Europe’s largest – gravity wine cellars Liliac has quickly established an impressive reputation in Lechința DOC since releasing its first vintage in 2011 Liliac has pioneered red wines in the region as well as experimenting with recioto styles and producing Romania’s first orange wine This innovative approach extends to its sustainable viticultural practices: bats (‘liliac’ in Romanian) are encouraged through nesting boxes in the vineyards for natural pest control the region of Crișana and Maramureș is home to two DOCs: Minis and Crișana and can be considered Romania’s sparkling wine heartland The region has seen centuries of cultural interchange with neighbouring Hungary whose viticultural traditions have been an important influence The climate is more continental than in other parts of the country and thus producing grapes of particular balance and aromatic complexity As well as local varieties Fetească Albă and Fetească Regală varieties grown in the region include Hungarian Furmint In the Apuseni mountains in the region’s southeast more than 200,000 tourists per year venture into the famous Bears’ Cave to see some of the best-preserved skeletons of the cave bear has been family-owned for three generations the Moldovan Hills region borders Moldova along the river Prut possibly the country’s oldest winegrowing region vineyards here are often planted on south- and south-west-facing terraces for protection and optimal exposure and the region experiences high levels of sunshine (over 2,000 hours) and only around 500mm of rainfall each year the regional capital and Romania’s third-largest city is a top destination for visitors to the country Architecture landmarks are a key highlight: among the most remarkable are the Grand Hotel Traian and Iași university – which houses one of Romania’s leading viticultural research laboratories Dating from the 1600s and remarkably well preserved has cellars full of wine produced by its own monks The Moldovan Hills region has extensive plantings of Grasă which together form the traditional blend of Cotnari’s famous sweet white wine These wines (sometimes botrytised) have been renowned since the 1500s and competed with Tokaji Aszú as favourites in the courts of late medieval Europe The estate grows Romanian varieties only; with historical plantings of Grasă de Cotnari Fetească Albă and Tămâioasă Românească it has recently added Fetească Neagră and Busuioacă de Bohotin Cotnari’s focus is on premium dry and semi-dry whites Grasă de Cotnari is the producer’s flagship yielding wines with a unique character and ageing potential Domeniile Avereşti produces wine in Huși DOC focusing on the production of white wines from local varieties such as Zghihară and Busuioacă de Bohotin the initial bottle of each vintage is ceremoniously placed in the cellar paying tribute to nature and the region’s former vinegrowers The family-owned and -run Gîrboiu winery was established in 2005 Its vineyards cover around 200ha in the hills of Cotești DOC at elevations of 150-200m and include plantings of forgotten local varieties Șarbă and Plăvaie The winery’s portfolio includes brands whose names allude to the frequent earthquakes in the area – Vrancea is Romania’s most active seismic area Muntenia and its western neighbour Oltenia cover a large area south of Transylvania in the foothills of the southern Carpathians the Muntenia and Oltenia Hills region is largely devoted to red wine Syrah and Fetească Neagră as the most planted varieties white wines are also produced in the region: the area around Pietroasele late-harvest Tămâioasă (often botrytised) on its calcareous soil Muntenia is home to the renowned Dealu Mare DOC (lit This large DOC – with circa 3,200ha of vines – stretches for about 65 kilometres and is widely considered one of the most important in the country producing both red and white still wines to wide international acclaim one of Dealu Mare’s most prominent producers has won 500 international medals for its wines It has a diversified and great-value portfolio – recently expanded to include sparkling organic and orange wines – with more than 20 ranges targeting all market segments At the crossroads of tradition and innovation New-World approach led by winemaker Stephen Donnely at the estate’s state-of-the-art winery Domeniile Franco-Române (DFR)was founded by Burgundian winemaker Denis Thomas in 2000 Thomas set out to make ‘Romanian wines with a French touch’ Conversion to organic farming began in 2003 and in 2006 the winery produced the first certified organic wine in Romania DFR is under the ownership of the Olariu family The Olarius expanded DFR’s holdings by incorporating 40ha from the storied Domeniile Persu-Eminescu an estate owned by Mihnea’s great-grandparents Alexandru Persu and Ecaterina Eminescu (granddaughter of eminent Romanian poet Mihai Eminescu) oenology-trained Aurelia Vișinescu honed her craft working three vintages South Africa and Australia Although this New World experience influences the style of her wines she pairs it with a passion for her country’s winemaking history and local varieties Aurelia Vișinescu pioneered the vinification of Fetească Neagră as a dry wine actively contributing to the reassessment of the grape’s potential The famed Davino winery needs little introduction Having started in 2003 as only the third private winery in Romania Davino has consistently been among the country’s most highly regarded producers ever since including 40-year-old Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot Davino’s wines range from blends expressing terroir single-varietal wines showcasing local grapes to the renowned Domaine Ceptura collection and the powerful With 70ha of vines – including plots planted more than 40 years ago – located around the hills of Tegăneanu and Zorilor DeMatei is an acclaimed Dealu Mare producer known for the quality and age-worthiness of its wines hailing from old vines It is well known among Romanians as the producer of Prince Matei an iconic Merlot produced with fruit from the Villa Zorilor vineyard in Dealu Mare every year since 1998 DeMatei has also earned international recognition for its Migala and single-vineyard Patima ranges Ceptura Winery produced its first wine in 2005 following the reconstruction of its winery Since then more than 7M € have been invested in sophisticated state-of-the-art equipment Crama Ceptura’s winery is located in the Ceptura village the estate produces a diverse and characterful range from both local and international grape varieties that fully express the uniqueness of the local terroir The potential of Dealu Mare’s terroir has not gone unnoticed by foreign winemakers: including Piero Antinori Antinori founded Viile Metamorfosis in 2008 with the aim of expressing the full potential of the local grapes and terroirs It established Negru de Drăgăşani in the region alongside other Romanian varieties such as Tămâioasă Românească the estate is attracting particular attention for its Via Marchizului single-vineyard range Sâmburești takes its name from the Sâmburul hill and the surrounding DOC whose plum trees are a testament to its warm mesoclimate Its origins date back to the beginning of the 20th century a prominent Romanian aristocrat and politician invited French oenologist August Joseph Ville to visit the estate Sâmburești has since focused on Bordeaux blends following Ville’s advice to plant French noble varieties building upon its historical reputation while investing on modern equipment and extending vineyard holdings to a total of 500ha Oprişor Wine Estate – owned by German group Reh Kendermann – grows a range of 13 local and international varieties in its 252ha of vineyards Having bought and refitted a cellar dating from the 1970s with modern equipment Oprişor nonetheless found a use for one of its enormous concrete tanks between the Danube and the Black Sea coast Dobrogea sees very low rainfall for Romania (150-200mm) and up to 300 days of sunshine each year that Dobrogea is one of the regions of Romania most threatened by the effects of climate change The Murfatlar Research and Development Center for Viticulture and Vinification has been collecting invaluable climate data since the 1960s allowing viticulturists to track and better understand its effects Murfatlar (known for periods of its history as Basarabi) is its most famous wine-producing subregion traditionally known for dry whites and sweet desert whites Tourists can visit the Basarabi-Murfatlar Cave Complex a medieval Christian monastery made up of linked tunnels and caves dug into the chalk hills The cave complex includes several churches dwelling rooms and tombs dating from the 9th-11th centuries AD and features religious carvings and inscriptions in several languages Dobrogea contains the wetlands of the Danube delta which includes several national parks to protect the area’s rich and important biodiversity the Danube also plays an important role in the moderation of the region’s climate Family-run Rasova has 61ha of vineyards in the Murfatlar DOC and has become famous for both its wines and architecture It released its first wines in 2015 with the aim of becoming a benchmark of terroir-driven winemaking Having instantly become a popular tourist destination it is perfectly positioned as the first thing visitors see as they cross the Cernavodă bridge returning from the seaside have an upper layer of chernozem over chalky soil and see moderating influences from the Black Sea – a idiosyncratic terroir reflected in Bogdan’s wines terroir and biodynamic practices are used to craft expressive wines among which are renowned expressions of Fetească Neagră the estate’s flagship and most planted variety manages all its vineyards following organic and sustainable viticulture practices The vineyards are embraced by the Viişoara Forest which provides a moderating effect and contributes to the overall balance of the vines With the belief that great winemaking starts in the vineyards Dropia employs a quality-led approach to produce a range of accessible and approachable wines Viticola Sarica Niculițel Winery was established as a state-owned producer in 1958 and privatised in 1991 with extensive plantings taking place in the 60s located in the oldest vineyard area in Dobrogea Sarica Niculitel pioneered the planting of Aligoté in the region gaining international acclaim for the wines produced with the French variety Among them is the estate’s award-winning Caii de la Letea Aligoté Murfatlar is one of Romania’s most storied estates tracing a direct lineage to winemaking practices in the region as far back as 43 BCE Its modern history started in the early 20th century with new plantings of international varieties and gained traction with the creation of the state-owned Murtaflar in 1955 The estate expanded to cover 2600ha of vineyards becoming Romania’s leading producer and producing wines that soon gained international recognition Murtaflar started a new chapter under private ownership with the aim of consolidating and carrying the reputation of the estate’s wines forward Banat has a comparatively small vineyard area and total wine production cooler than the rest of the country but warmer than most of nearby Hungary with which its history – viticultural and otherwise – is intertwined It encompasses – within Romanian territory – two DOCs (Banat and Recaş) and two IGPs (Viile Timișului and Viile Carasului) The term ‘Banat’ has its roots in the Middle Ages when ‘banate’ was used to designate frontier provinces ruled by a military governor called a ‘ban’ with a rich wine and food heritage shaped by all the different ethnicities – Romanians Hungarians and Swabians – that share its territory and history The Cotnari wines have added three more medals to their tally this time at the 2015 edition of Concours Mondial the world competition of wines in Brussels while Tamaioasa Romaneasca 2014 won silver “The new medals bring us more reasons for delight, while stimulating us to be even more competitive. The over 160 medals won over the past decade in prestigious world competitions show that Cotnari is an undisputable leader of quality Romanian wines that fully contributes to keeping Romania in the elite of the world’s grand wines,” Cotnari SA Marketing director Catalin Grecu told Agerpres. the wine world has convened at the Concours Mondial de Bruxelles more than 8,000 wines from across the globe were tasted over three days by a panel of 300 industry members from 50 countries launched a large re-branding campaign for its flagship range that also includes other 100 % Romanian types: Tamaioasa Romaneasca The range’s modernizing process took a year and was based on a series of complex marketing researches and consumer that showed the need of a strong change in the brand’s universe. The final result brought the biggest visual transformation of the Cotnari range compared to 1997, the moment in which was done the latest label change. the Cotnari range doesn’t always have a new and elegant embossed bottle a label that combines the range’s definitory elements with the modernity required by the consumer but also a new product: the rose wine Busuioaca de Bohotin as an answer to the market’s consumption range “The wine has been alongside us long enough in order to embody for the people a series of special characteristics The platform „Viata de Cotnari” is a collection of memorable moments that justify the extraordinary qualities of the flagship variety (and alongside it of the whole range) where grow only Romanian authentic varieties and the people live only by the wine’s values each day it’s the place where the spirit of the Romanian wine really lives,” said Constantin Deleanu providing social media features and to analyse how our website is used.