Terraces, flysch and poljšakica

Grof — wines from the terraces of Šmarje

Šmarje, Vipava Valley · Slovenia

On the southern slope of the Vipava hills, in the medieval village of Šmarje, lies the Grof estate with ten hectares of flysch terraces. From fresh whites to Cru selections and the rare native poljšakica: wines shaped by the land, the Mediterranean wind and a patient cellar.

Location: Šmarje, Vipava Valley
Estate: 10 ha of flysch terraces
Native grape: poljšakica, Škol vineyard
Visits: cellar visits and tastings by arrangement

Vine rows on the terraces, seen from above

A hillside village, an estate on terraces

Šmarje sits on the southern slope of the Vipava hills. Around the village the vineyards step down in terraces, framed by acacia, pine, oak and olive trees. The climate weaves Mediterranean and continental influences together — warm summers, cooler nights and the wind the Vipava Valley knows well.

Grof farms ten hectares of these terraces. The soil is skeletal, stony flysch that holds little water, so the vines root deeply and yield little.

Vineyard terraces on a Vipava Valley hillside

Every vineyard has its name

Most of the vineyards face south. The exceptions are Postojno and Maratovec, which face east and which Grof uses for Sauvignon Cru and Pinela Cru. The vines are trained to single guyot and yields are low — around a kilo of grapes per vine.

White grapes are picked when acidity and aroma are in balance; reds in the second half of September or early October, once the tannins are ripe too.

Poljšakica, a grape that almost vanished

Poljšakica is an old native white grape of the Vipava Valley. It was once often added to blends because, being hardy, it thrived on sites where other varieties fell short. Today only a few hectares remain. Grof grows it on the flysch terraces of its Škol vineyard and makes a fresh wine from it, lower in alcohol and gentler in acidity.

Fresh wines and Cru

The fresh whites and rosé aim for pure varietal expression: hand-picked grapes are chilled overnight, gently pressed away from oxygen and fermented in temperature-controlled steel. They stay on the fine lees until bottling the following spring.

The Cru whites come from selected sites. They ferment spontaneously in French oak and spend six months on the lees, bottled in August of the following year. The Cru reds age eighteen months in cask in an old vaulted cellar dug into the ground. That is why Pinela has two faces: fresh and Cru.

Open wooden doors of an old stone cellar with casks inside

A cellar with a long memory

According to the estate, the cellar dates from the time of Count Ivan Cobenzl, who bought the Šmarje property in 1574; it stayed in the family until 1810. Hence the name Grof — “count”. Šmarje is also linked to Matija Vertovec, the first to write about viticulture in Slovene, who according to Grof visited this cellar.

Cellar visits and guided tastings are possible by prior arrangement.

Fresh line and Cru

Fresh whites and rosé: Grapeshand-picked, chilled overnight; Fermentationsteel, controlled temperature; Ageingon the lees until spring

Grof Rosso: Grapeshand-picked into 20 kg crates; Fermentation12–15 days' maceration in concrete; Ageing12 months in larger oak casks

Cru whites: Grapesselected sites, about 1 kg per vine; Fermentationspontaneous, in French oak; Ageing6 months on the lees, bottled in August

Cru reds: Grapesold vineyards, about 1 kg per vine; Fermentation15–20 days' maceration in 500 l casks; Ageing18 months in French oak

Wine or line	Grapes	Fermentation	Ageing
Fresh whites and rosé	hand-picked, chilled overnight	steel, controlled temperature	on the lees until spring
Grof Rosso	hand-picked into 20 kg crates	12–15 days' maceration in concrete	12 months in larger oak casks
Cru whites	selected sites, about 1 kg per vine	spontaneous, in French oak	6 months on the lees, bottled in August
Cru reds	old vineyards, about 1 kg per vine	15–20 days' maceration in 500 l casks	18 months in French oak