Serbian wine

There are nearly 70,000 hectares of vineyards in Serbia, producing about 390,000 metric tons of grapes annually. The majority of production is dedicated to local wineries.

Major varieties include the Belgrade Seedless, Prokupac, Sauvignon, Italian Riesling, Cabernet, Chardonnay, White and Red Burgundy, Hamburg, Muscat, Afus Ali, Vranac, Tamjanka, Krstac, Smederevka, and Dinka.

Rare varieties such as the Krokan also survive in Serbia.

The harvest season of the grapes is in July-October.

The Serbian wine industry is showing signs of significant growth, with In Vino, an annual international wine festival, held annually in Belgrade since 2004. Serbia has its own Prokupac grape; used alone it makes a light, fruity red.

History

History of Serbian wine growing is more than 1000 years long. From the first establishment of the Serbian state in 8th and 9th century and especially during the ruling period of Nemanjić dynasty from 11th till the end of 14th century Serbian rulers specially cherished the vine growing culture.

The eldest authentic grape sorts are considered to be Prokupac and Tamjanika. Prokupac is the sort of red wines and was known even in early Middle Ages; while Tamjanika is a Muscat sort originated from Southern France, known in Serbia for more than 500 years.

Beside these sorts, today in Serbia are mostly raised Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Rhain or Italian Riesling, Merlot and Cabernet Sauvignon.

The most important Serbian vineyard areas are situated in Negotinska krajina (250 km in the east from Belgrade), in the area of Vršac (100 km on the north-east from Belgrade), on the slopes of Fruška Gora (80km on the north-west from Belgrade), in the Subotica area (200 km on the north from Belgrade), Šumadija (100 km on the south-west from Belgrade) and Župa (230 km on the south-east from Belgrade). Long lasting tradition of Serbian wine growing in the last 10 years was renewed by numerous private producers that built contemporary cellars and already became well known out of the borders of Serbia.