Pick of the Best – Oliver vs Christopher in Slovenia

In this new series, we’ll both pick one bottle of award winning Sparkling Wine from a set country, this time it’s Slovenia, the country with LOVE in its name, after we’ve chosen our bottle we’ll showcase them to each other and see if we can be persuaded to change sides.

The Sparkling Wines which we’ve chosen are for our own reasons, whether it be because of the aromas and flavours inside the bottle, the way they make their wines or the label that entices you into buying it.

Watch the showdown in this video here or read on to find out the conclusion.

We’re going to do this on an honest points system, so each wine will be judged on the following:

1. The Label
2. The Capsules
3. The Colour
4. The Bubbles
5. The Aroma
6. The Flavour
7. Plus Experience at the Winery

Oliver’s Pick of the Best

When deciding which Slovenian Sparkling Wine to represent, I ended up thinking back to the Love Wine Love Slovenian Tasting in the Champagne Route Bar in London, I remember tasting this bottle of Bjana and being blown away with the array of flavours.

Bjana – Cuvee Prestige 2016

Aroma 👃 “Melted butter, creamy citrus, pastry, brioche with apricot and yellow floral aromas.”

Flavour 👅 “Citrus lead with pastry, melted butter, apricots and yellow floral with hints of saline on the palate.”

This Slovenian Sparkling Wine a Gold Medal in the Classic & Elegant Category at the Glass of Bubbly Awards 2021

Bjana Winery takes its name from its village Biljana in the heart of the Goriška Brda winegrowing district, an the Alpine foothills which receives a strong influence from the Mediterranean. Their award winning sparkling wines are matured within Chateau Dorišče, home to one of the oldest cellars in Slovenia.

The Chateau Dorišče was built during the 13th century by the Counts of Gorizia, the Chateau has had many owners over the centuries, but now it is owned by Miran Sirk and his family, it was bought by his grand grandfather Franc Obljubek following World War I.

You can find out more about this amazing sparkling winery right here: A visit to Slovenian Sparkling Wine Bjana

Christopher’s Pick of the Best

I recently did a tasting including a white, rosé and red sparkling wine from Vina Kobal and their rosé just had an explosion of delightful red fruit flavours that stuck in my memory.

Vina Kobal Štanjel – Rose Penina

Aroma 👃 “This winery always delivers excellent Bubbly. Wild strawberry, raspberry ice cream, pink floral on the nose.”

Flavour 👅 “Fresh and a perfect example of creamy style fizz. Strawberry candy, silky strawberry ice cream, delicate pink rose petals, touch of tannins. “

This Slovenian Sparkling Wine Won the Gold Medal in the Creamy Category at the Glass of Bubbly Awards 2021

The Vina Kobal brand presents wines from selected vineyards in Karst, Slovenia, its the oldest village in the area of Štanjel, the Vina Kobal brand presents the selected wine to you the Sparkling Wine lover.

The winery has an old heritage behind it and every day they make sure they keep to its traditions, always thriving to deliver you the best. They like many other wineries are always making sure they look after nature, as nature looks after them, they have just over 60 ha of vineyards planted in Karst, over the years they have become one of the leading wineries in the region.

Results

1. The Label (Bjana)
2. The Capsules (Bjana)
3. The Colour (Vina Kobal)
4. The Bubbles (Vina Kobal)
5. The Aroma (Bjana + Vina Kobal)
6. The Flavour (Bjana + Vina Kobal)
7. Plus Experience at the Winery (Bjana)

Bjana – 5 Points     /     Vina Kobal – 4 Points

After a fair showcasing, the results are in, and winning by just 1 close point is the Bjana Cuvee Prestige 2016.

Image Credit: Slovenian Flag – Slovenian Flag –