October the 22nd, 2021 - Belje red wine has left quite the impression and left their Italian and French competitors behind in the dust. While this isn't a surprise for anyone who has enjoyed a glass of Croatian wine in their lives, it certainly helps to bring even more much deserved attention to the many varieties this country produces.

As Poslovni Dnevnik/Suzana Varosanec writes, Belje red wines have continued to sweep up various different awards throughout 2021 after winning 54 medals so far, of which 21 were ''golds'' and two were impressive championship titles.

They have now recorded yet another new global success: Belje red wine was declared the second best wine, which was evaluated with 91 points at the Emozioni dal Mondo Merlot e Cabernet Insieme in Italy, highly regarded around the world where many renowned producers of merlot, cabernet sauvignon and cabernet franc apply, and which this year boasted 220 samples from 22 countries.

According to the largest Croatian grape producer with 650 hectares of its own vineyards in the Danube region, the Belje red wine in question is a premium blend of cabernet sauvignon and Merlot vintage from 2019, which left some of the most famous Italian and French cellars, such as Bordeaux Grand Cru from Saint Emiliona, in the dust.

The top quality of red varieties from the Belje vineyards was confirmed by three gold medals (out of a total of 56), for the premium blend of cabernet sauvignon and Merlot, premium merlot and Goldberg Red, all of which are wines from back in 2019.

Cabernet sauvignon merlot Vina Belje was also chosen among the fifteen wines awarded by journalists. According to the President of the Management Board of Belje plus Andrej Dean, this success is a continuation of the recognition and award they received at the Decanter for their 2008 Merlot vintage, which showed the world for the first time how much potential they have in the production of excellent red wines.

The fact that they have won 91 points, he says, shows that the blend cabernet sauvignon - Merlot is among the best wines of these varieties, not only in the Republic of Croatia but also across the world, and the acceptable price and availability on the market will certainly contribute to its further popularity among consumers.

For more, check out Made in Croatia.