The roads which were threaded by Karadjordje, his grandson the beloved king Peter I of Serbia, and later on the whole royal family of Karadjordjevićs, are entwined with Oplenac’s wine roads. In this wine area are preserved the oldest domestic wines of Serbia.
Maybe Karadjordje wasn’t driven by desire for splendid wine when he chose specifically this area suitable for cultivating vines for his capitol, but his descendants were well aware of Oplenac’s stellar wine treasures.
Oplenac became the center of Serbian state in 19th century, but also the capitol of wine as well. Rested upon this rocky and woodland hillside which is under the state’s protection, is the church of St George, the Mausoleum of royal family of Karadjordjević.
King Peter I Karadjordjević planted 75 acres of greatest vine varieties alone, from all around of Europe. Several years later, in 1931 to be precise, his son Aleksandar, an heir to the throne and the first king of the state of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes built the King’s Cellar which is the greatest tourist attraction of Oplenac’s wine route today.
In the part of the vinery which has been transformed into a museum, are safely kept some of the first wine barrels. Among them are the three barrels which were awarded as a wedding gift to King Aleksandar in 1922 from his people of Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Every barrel has a volume of 530 gallons, and on their front are carved the initial verses of Serbian, Croatian and Slovenian hymn.
In King’s Cellar there are vintage wines and surely those are the oldest domestic wines preserved in whole Serbia. From 1931 we have preserved Oplenka, Žilavka and White Burgundy, bottled in lavish unique bottles engraved with king’s coat of arms, and from vintage wines that came later we have Prokupac, Black Muscat, and Plemenka.
After the restoration of famous king’s vineyards nine years ago, in there are thriving high quality sorts of grapes from which are made Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay and Rosé. The conditions for cultivating vines in this part of Serbia have favored the cultivation of old sorts of Smederevka as well as indigenous sorts of Prokupac and Vranac.
Even though the Karajordjević’s wine glorified this area, winemaking here dates back long before this royal family. Village Vinča and the Oplenac’s hill Romans named after the Neolithic word which means wine – Vincea. Here in this village is situated the “Aleksandrović” winery, which has gotten its recipe for the best wine ever made in King’s cellar from the royal family’s cellarman.
And so once again has been born the supreme royal wine fit for kings – “Trijumf” (Triumph), with its firm structure, rich in creamy texture and sophisticated fruity-mineral character. Many more tasty and smooth wines can be found in “Aleksandrović” winery barrels.
On this wine route, true wine connoisseurs will not miss the “Jelić” cellars near Valjevo, and “Radovanović” in a place called Krnjevo, near Velika Plana, a winery which made for Serbia’s Olympic team in London a special red and white wine called the “Olympic Wine”.
Photo: Wikimedia Commons by XJeanLuc under Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
