Brandy, Gin and More from Croatia's First Craft Distillery: Brigljević Distillery

On my first day in Zagreb, at the Pink Day Festival, I discovered artisanal Croatian gin through Iguana Gin and quickly learned it was a  rising phenomenon in Hrvatska. Little did I know that ten days later I would be introduced to the man and distillery who started this trend. 

Knowing that I was completely free during my last full day in Croatia, the Zagreb County Tourist Board arranged a visit to the small city of Velika Gorica and the larger Turopolye region just south of Zagreb. This region has a vibrant history and in 1225 the inhabitants of Turopolje were recognized as free noblemen by King Bela IV and were exempted from serving the Town of Zagreb. And on January 7th, 1737 King Karlo III gave the noble municipality of Turopolje the official stamp to create a coat of arms. The coat of arms of all the noble families, wooden architecture, and more local culture and history is on display at the Turopolje Museum.

Fortunately, my prudent and knowledgeable tour guide had more plans for me and had scheduled a visit to the area's only distillery:  Brigljević Distillery.  The craft distillery was founded in 2002 by Miljenko Brigljević and today is one of the oldest distilleries in Croatia. And in 2015, Brigljević decided to create a handcrafted gin which he called Flying Cat Gin. The recipe was based on London Dry Gin and featured juniper berries, fennel seeds, almonds, cinnamon, lemon peel, ginger, mint, and clove. In addition, the family has long ties to Turopolje where the Brigljević family was awarded the noble title in 1524. This family coat of arms is proudly displayed on the labels of the Brigljević liqueurs. 

I was met by Miljenko, his wife, and their daughter Gabriela -- who plans to succeed her father. The focus of this visit was not gin or liqueurs, but brandy -- and all distilled using the family's carport-ready copper pot still.  Miljenko emphasized throughout the tasting that focusing on the spirit's aromatics is the central guide to his craft. Today he and Gabriela also train their palates through regular meetings of a Zagreb whiskey club, but in the past Croatians had little concept or tradition of aged spirits. In general, Croatian Rakija is served fresh and if aged, usually in the bottle or small glass wine fermenters. In order to create a truly world-class aged spirit, Miljenko had to experiment with various oak casks to determine which worked best not only with an individual spirit but also with the local climate (mostly temperatures) as a whole. And they are still experimenting.

Barrelina Apple Brandy First Cask (50%)
This brandy is doubled distilled from local apple cider made from four apple varieties, including Pink Lady and Granny Smith, and aged 18 months in American oak barrels. Distilled in 2017 and bottled in 2020. Very harmonious between the apple aroma and flavors combined with the oak-driven vanilla and honey.. 

Barrelina Apple Brandy Teatro Vaniglia (55.1%)
This brandy is doubled distilled from local apple cider and aged for 24 months in barrique barrels made from American oak by an Italian cooperage. Distilled in 2018 and bottled in 2021. This brandy sizzles with apple aromas and flavors with notes of vanilla throughout. Very smooth at cask strength. 

Barrelina Pear Brandy Quarter Cask  (50%)
The double-distilled perry is aged four years in American oak quarter casks. Distilled in 2018 and bottled in 2022. This is a lengthy brandy with vibrant fruit and slight spices. 

Dark Forest 8-Year Pomace Brandy (44.1%)
This grape brandy was made by double-distilling four varieties of grapes grown in Baranja, Slavonia. The brandy was first aged for two years in a Slavonian oak barrel and then six years in a Bordeaux wine barrel. Distilled in 2013 and bottled in 2021. Expect complexity. Baked raisins and fig on the nose and then earthiness, raisins, honey, and more throughout the long finish. 

I also tasted several upcoming attractions of malt whisky and brandies aged in unique barrel sources such as Laphroaig and Chateau Lafite Rothschild. Innovation and experimentation are continual processes at  Brigljević Distillery.

Grape Spotlight: Dalmatian Plavac Mali

"Plavac Mali is used to craft some of the finest Croatian red wines, especially when it comes from the barren, steep southern slopes of Southern and Central Dalmatia facing the sea, from positions such as Dingac, Postup and Ponikve on Peljesac, Ivan Dolac on Hvar, Murvice on Brac, and Komarna and Konavle on the coastline.  These locales are the home of the most famous labels, wines that are often powerful, alcoholic, full-bodied, and rich. Further inland, Plavac is used to make fruitier, lighter, juicier, everyday wines to be enjoyed with a variety of cuisines." Wines of Croatia

Today, September 21st is International Plavac Mali Day, a celebration created by the Croatian Wine Alliance - a partnership between Anna M. Viducic (Aroma Wine Co) & Mirena Bagur - Win Burke (Croatian Premium Wine Imports).  Thus, it's more than appropriate to highlight Croatia's predominant red grape variety. It is grown throughout Dalmatia with the best-known plantings on the Peljesac Peninsula in the Dingač and Postup appellations. In fact, Dingač became the first protected Croatian wine region in 1961. However, my appreciation of Plavac Mali comes more from the newly created Komarna appellation through the wines available from Croatian Premium Wine Imports and our recent visit to Terra Madre Winery. Komarna wineries planted their Plavac Mali vineyards using best practices from the Peljesac Peninsula particularly planting on the south-southwest slopes.

That being said, there are some differences in wines produced in Komarna and Peljesac. According to Antonija Car, winemaker at Saints Hills Winery, Komarna is a lighter style of wine than Dingač and the cooler area is able to better preserve acidity. In contrast, Dingač is hotter with more quartz in the otherwise similar limestone soil leading to less acidity, more sugars, and thus higher alcohol.  In Peljesac, vines are planted very close together and trained as bush vines to avoid the harsh effects of the Mediterranean sun. 

The name Plavac Mali is derived from the blue color of the berries (plavac) and the size of these berries (mali). An interesting phenomenon is that the berries on any particular cluster ripen at different times as evident from this slide courtesy of Volarević Winery. This forces the winemaker to make a difficult decision during harvest to obtain a sufficient balance between pH and sugars. This pushes harvest back until the end of September to early October. 

The discovery of Plavac Mali's lineage offers another fascinating story thanks to Mike Grgich, the winemaker behind the iconic Chateau Montelena Chardonnay. Here is a short paraphrase but for the full story, we recommend this video of Grgich or our post Grape Spotlight: Croatian Tribidrag (Crljenak Kaštelanski, Pribidrag, Kratošija) aka Zinfandel. When seeing Zinfandel planted in California it reminded him of Plavac Mali vines from his native Croatia. He enlisted help from Dr. Carole Meredith of U.C. Davis who with assistance from Croatian researchers determined that Plavac Mali was related to Zinfandel but not an exact DNA match. Instead, Zinfandel was the same as its parent Crljenak Kaštelanski - with the other parent being the ancient Croatian grape Dobričić.

There are several Dalmatian Plavac Mali wines available in the United States with most providing the characteristic dried figs, raisins, and cocoa aroma followed by cherry flavors, spice, and solid tannins. Komarna grown Plavac Mali wines are available here along with a Dingač and Postup versions made by Miljenko Grgić, Saints Hills Winery, and Chateau Mario.

A Little Spain and Croatia in the Blue Ridge Mountains

Over twenty years ago, John Delmare and his family planted the first vines on the historic Rappahannock County property they had purchased called Glenway Farm. This site in the Blue Ridge Mountains has been farmed since 1804 and is well suited for grapes with its high elevation (900' and 1200'); southeast aspect, with 10% grade; and rocky soil comprised of shale, limestone, and clay.  They initially planted a variety of varieties from vinifera to hybrids - one such French hybrid being Vidal Blanc. This grape is a cross between the Vitis vinifera Ugni blanc and another hybrid variety, Rayon d'Or, and is intended to be winter-hardy with high sugar levels with moderate to high acidity.

Rappahannock Cellars released their first vintage of wines in 2000 and since that date, they have held back a portion of their Vidal Blanc in each successive year.  They take that Vidal and siphon it into five-gallon glass casks and place on the winery's roof where it ages in the sun for 10 months. The direct sunlight and heat oxidize the wine which, when optimal, produces characters of cooked or dried fruit, nuttiness, and yeast. These casks are brought inside and aged over the winter and then back-blended with the previous vintages in their version of a Spanish Solara system. Each year the Solara gets older with a portion bottled for release - which they appropriately label Solera ($34).

This wine is dry yet very complex - similar to a Spanish Oloroso sherry with nuttiness and yeastiness immediately apparent. Since the wine is naturally oxidized it can remain corked for a few months so is appropriate for sipping or in cocktails - one is mixing with grape brandy from the winery's sister distillery Dida's Distillery.

The distillery honors the Delmare's great-grandfather Paul Mariani as Dida translates to Grandfather in Croatia and it was their Dida who immigrated to California and introduced the family to agriculture. Distiller Allan Delmare further commemorates their heritage by producing the Dida's Vintners Choice Immature Brandy ($40), a grape brandy in the tradition of the Croatian fruit brandies - rakija.  In rare instances, you can find oak-aged rakija and in Hungary, the best home-made palinka's are those with a little oak seasoning.   The Dida's has even more seasoning using 100% in new American charred oak barrels which smooth the rouge edges without overwhelming the fruit. I found my local rakija source.  Zivjeli!!.