Macedonia

Makedonija was a part of the former state of Yugoslavia, and gained independence in 1991. It has a total area of 25.700 square kilometres. For hisorical development, see Macedonia. Greece has protested against the name, which has been in use provisionally since 1993, as it is identical with the most northerly Greek province. As of 2006, the UN has not officially recognised the name, which continues to cause confusion. There are three wine-growing regions: Povadarja, Plina-Osogovo and Pelagonija-Polog. The vineyard area totals around 35.000 hectares. Mainly red varieties are palnted for wine production, there are some white wines as well as table grape varieties produced. The most important varieties are Cabernet Sauvignon, Chardonnay, Grenache, Kadarka, Kratosija, Merlot, Pinot Noir, Plovdina, Prokopac, Rkatsiteli (mainly as a blend), Sauvignon Blanc, Temjanika (for spicy sweet white wines), Traminac (Traminer), Vranac (known here as Vranec) and Zilavka. A quality wine with a controlled designation of origin is known as Vrvno Vino. Among the best-known producers are Bovin-Negotino, Lozar-Veles and Povardarie-Negotine.