Home / Red Variety / Prokupac / ‘Sub Rosa’ – Vino Budimir from Župa, Serbia

 

Vino Budimir’s top wine is ‘Sub Rosa’, “a cuvee of Prokupac (60%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (40%)…dancing on the palate…[with] a whole spectrum of further notes – coffee, chocolate, violets, cherry.”

By Mariusz Rybak

As a matter of fact, there are two Budimir wineries – the small “garage” cellar of Budimir Zdravković, called Grandpa Budimir, and the big modern creation of his children, who named their winery after him because he was the one who passed the love for wine on to them.

But the family tradition in winemaking is much longer. Their wine was already strengthening the army of Prince Mihajlo Obrenović back in 1878, when Serbia became a fully independent country as a result of the Russo-Turkish War. Grandpa Budimir and his wife, Vera, have worked with wine for seventy years. They dismiss barrique in order to produce fruity wines, as they are convinced that wine is from grapes and this should be the first flavour of the divine beverage.

Vinarija Budimir - Vineyards

Such an opinion is – to my contentment – not rare in Župa. Personally I dislike over-oaked wines and love the sarcastic name, which is sometimes given to them by older Serbian winemakers: daskovača, where “daska” designates a wooden plank and “–ača” is a typical ending for different rakijas (Serbian grappa), like, for instance, dunjevača (rakija from dunja – quince), kajsijevača (rakija from kajsija – apricot), etc. A wine, which smells and tastes predominantly like oak, is like rakija made from wood. As simple and witty as the word is, it expresses well the problem of many wines.

Grandpa Budimir is known not only for his traditional wines, but also rakija and his famous vinjak Serbian brandy), which I had the opportunity to taste. This is a lovely brandy for meditation, strong but charming. Many would add to this enjoyment a cigar in a dappled shade of late summer afternoon, and maybe a good book.

The big Budimir winery is quickly becoming one of the most renowned Serbian producers. On the one hand, they revitalized some century-old vineyards and work a lot with autochthonous varieties, on the other hand, all this happens with the support of state-of-the-art technology.

Their top wine is “Sub Rosa”, a cuvee of Prokupac (60%) and Cabernet Sauvignon (40%). This charming red recently won several medals on international fairs and I had the opportunity to taste it for the first time on the Balkans International Wine Competition in Sofia. I’m afraid that both the name, meaning in Latin “under the rose”, and the place, Bulgaria – famous for rose oil production – influenced my perception and I wanted to believe that the floral notes are all about roses. In fact, the name is related to the phrase used, also in English, to denote secrecy and mystery, and shouldn’t be understand as a hint to the aroma of the wine. But this smooth wine, dancing on the palate, offers a whole spectrum of further notes: coffee, chocolate, violets, cherry. I love the label – its colour, texture, and simple elegance! I know that the wine is available in the U.S., for around $26.

Budimir offers also TamjanikaMerlot, white and red “Triada” cuvees, rosé, and a Rhine Riesling “Margus Margi”, with the character, which I find so typical for Serbia and its neighbours, but very different from what we know from Germany and Austria.

Mariusz Rybak is currently researching Serbian wine culture and the notion of wine as a cultural good. His musings on such topics can be read on his blog, Kawa and Vino.

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