CROATIA | FAMILY | ROOTS

Grgić Vina Winery

“There is no scientifically proven formula for making great wines. Over the years, I have learned to nurture and communicate with the wines. I realized that you don’t make wine with only your head and your senses. You make wine with your heart. You have to pour your heart and your love into the wine.”

-Miljenko "Mike" Grgich

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Grgić Vina was established in 1996 by legendary Napa Valley winemaker, Croatian-born Miljenko “Mike” Grgich and his daughter, Violet Grgich.  Mike started the winery to produce the finest wines from native Dalmatian grapes and concentrates on crafting Croatia’s very best varietals: Plavac Mali and Pošip.

The winery is perched overlooking the Adriatic Sea just north of the historic walled city, Dubrovnik, in the southern Dalmatia wine region of Croatia. For more information about us and visiting the winery please click here.

Grgić Vina

Croatian Winery

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Plavac Mali

When Mike Grgich came to the Napa Valley in 1958 to make wine, he noticed a remarkable resemblance between the Zinfandel and Plavac Mali of his native Croatia. Some 35 years later, Mike worked with scientists at University of California, Davis, to prove that Zinfandel was actually Crljenak Kaštelanski, a grape native to Croatia and parent of Plavac Mali. We grew our Plavac Mali (“little blue” in Croatian, referring to its small, bluish grapes) in the prestigious Dingač appellation, a small, steep area of vineyards perched above the Adriatic Sea on the south-facing slopes of the mountainous Pelješac Peninsula.

Pošip

Pošip is an indigenous Croatian variety developed through spontaneous crossing between two varieties from Korčula. This white wine grape variety has been grown for centuries in Croatia on several islands and along the Dalmatian coast, where the cool winds of the Adriatic Sea maintain the perfect temperatures for white grapes.

Croatia enjoys a long history of winemaking: records show grapes cultivated here centuries before the birth of Christ. Our Pošip grapes were grown on the island of Korčula at a small, steep area of vineyards perched above the Adriatic Sea. The just-picked grapes are brought by boat to the winery, just north of the historic walled city, Dubrovnik, in the southern Dalmatia wine region.

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