Guerila, Pinela, Vipava Valley, Slovenia, 2020

Producer Profile

Zmago Petrič's family's winery is located in Vipavska Dolina and from the very beginning, they have worked organically and biodynamically, devoting their energies to local grape varieties and respecting the natural environment around them.

Concentrating on the varieties of Zelen and Pinela which are only grown in this region and nowhere else on the planet, they have built a genuinely unique proposition. Everything is hand-picked, naturally fermented and then bottled unfiltered with just a minimal sulphur addition, creating wines that are delicate, mineral and full of freshness.

Viticulture

Viticulture procedures follow the biodynamic calender and is simple, with the focus on allowing the plants to yield only what it can naturally produce, other than by addition of green manure, biodynamic compost and biodynamic pesticides. All grapes are hand picked.

Winemaking

Hand harvest of biodynamically produced grapes. Four-hour maceration of crushed grapes, pressing and must decantation. Spontaneous fermentation with natural yeast already present on the grapes. Nine-month maturation of the wine on the lees in stainless steel tanks. Bottling according to Maria Thun moon calendar with minimal addition of sulphur.

Oak Ageing

No oak ageing

Tasting Note

A pale sunny yellow and lively colour. Distinguished by its complex nose. Aromas of peach, pineapple, citruses, dried flowers. A full-body and distinct minerality complete the balance of freshness and smoothness.

Food Matching

Seafood, pasta, risotto, white meat and cheeses.

Awards

Jancis Robinson 16 Points
Smells of apricots, pineapple and sage flowers. Very savoury and melted-cheese leesiness, that comforting taste of cheese bread straight out the oven. More fruit on the nose than on the palate. So interesting – it keeps changing as I taste it. One moment grapefruit, the next bread; then yogurt, then crab apples. Broadly streaked with bitterness and pith. Bold, off-beat, quirky. And I only feel the acidity on the end, where it tingles like a slow-burn green chilli. 16 Points, TC, August 2022.