Bulgarian wine, from Mavrud to Melnik

Bulgarian wine was already popular in the 80s and 90s for its excellent price-quality ratio. In recent years we have seen fewer Bulgarian wines at the liquor store. But Bulgarian winemaking has not stood still. There has been considerable investment and the Bulgarians are showing their face again. In addition to a large amount of international grapes, they have a good trump card in their hands with the local Melnik and Mavrud.

Ancient wine history

Bulgarian wine history is thousands of years old. Bulgaria is one of the oldest wine countries in the world. Until the Second World War, it was mainly small wine growers who produced for local consumption.

In the 1980s and 1990s, Bulgarians were remarkably successful on the European wine market. Bulgaria was even one of the largest wine exporters in the world. Bulgarian wine became synonymous with red wines with an excellent price-quality ratio. Many Dutch people also liked to buy a bottle of Bulgarian red at the supermarket during these years.

Due to the low sales prices, the much-needed investments were lagging behind. That has changed in the past ten years. Bulgarian legislation required winemakers to invest at least 70% of their profits in new wooden barriques and cellar equipment. Bulgarian winemaking has been modernized rapidly as a result.

International and indigenous grape varieties

The success of Bulgarian wine at the end of the previous century was due to the close involvement of the American University of California. The Americans recommended planting popular grape varieties such as Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Chardonnay. The Bulgarian climate is ideal for these grapes. And the Americans thought that the demand for wine from these 'usual suspects' would increase considerably.

As a result, more than half of the grapes planted are now blue and Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot are by far the most important, followed by indigenous varieties such as Mavrud, Rubin, Ruen, Melnik, Melnik 55 and Gamza (Kadarka).

International white grape varieties such as Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Aligoté and Riesling can also be found in abundance in Bulgaria. The most important indigenous white varieties are Dimyat, Misket and Kerazuda.

Bulgarian wine from indigenous grapes

Bulgarian wines from international grapes still have a good price-quality ratio, although the price is no longer as spectacularly low as in the 1980s. For adventurous wine drinkers, the wines from indigenous grapes are the most interesting. The red ones are juicy, often with sweet red fruit in the taste. The Mavrud is probably the strongest. It produces deep red wine with a spicy taste in which you can recognize licorice and laurel. A grape with a lot of potential. This also applies to the Rubin, the Melnik and the Melnik 55, which produce expressive wines with lots of red fruit and fine spices.