Taste Slovenia’s Wine Regions: A 4 stop itinerary to uncover this heavenly gem of Europe

All roads in Slovenia start or end in Ljubljana. It’s easy to see why, since the wonderful capital city is at the heart of the country and, from here, you can easily drive out to explore the wine regions. Now before you set off on a wine tour of Slovenia, Ljubljana makes for a great inauguration into the country’s wine culture. There are great restaurants that make awe-inspiring creative dishes that are meant to be paired with the local wine offering and there are wine bars all around Ljubljana with their own unique characteristics.

Kick-start your sojourn into Slovenia’s wine heritage with the leading wine-growing region of the country, Primorska. Built on traditions of crafting excellent Slovenian wine on top of contemporary methods, the Primorska wine region stretches from the Tuscany-like hillside of Goriška Brda to the largest peninsula of the Adriatic sea, the Slovenian Istria. With the unique marriage of alpine climate and the sea, Primorska’s sun-drenched grapevines are an indulgence of red, whites and full-bodied varieties of wine.

A speciality of the Primorska wine region is the indigenous grapes that produce the country’s much cherished orange wine. Wait, there’s rose, red, and white - but orange? It’s a fascinating colour for wine as each glass of this amber astringent - while glowing and alluringly beautiful - is actually white wine at its core. Through the process of the grape's skin, the colour naturally becomes deeper, into the orange that makes this nectar.

Heading to the East side of the country, the Posavje wine region is in the lower corner of the Sava river valley. Different versions of the ruby-red Pinot wine are produced here, including Chardonnay, Sivi Pinot (the local name for Pinot Gris), Pinot Blanc aka Beli Pinot, and Modri Pinot, otherwise known as Pinot Noir. While the Posavje wine region is the most up-and-coming in terms of notoriety among the three wine regions of Slovenia, it has plenty of charms. You can find many zidanice, which are the most folklore-type wine cottages that you can spend the night in, located in the middle of the vineyards.

Another treat is a unique wine only produced from the Posavje wine region - a tarty bright beverage that goes by the name of cviček. Since cviček is a red wine that also has a low alcohol content, it pairs perfectly with the mouth-watering traditional meat dishes of Slovenia; adding to the charm of the Posavje

In the northeast part of Slovenia lies the country's largest wine-growing and producing region, Podravje wine region. Boasting the oldest grapevine in, not just Europe, but the world - on top of being known for its white wines - the Podravje wine region is a treasure trove for wine lovers and travellers alike.

The dominion-ripples of vineyards on green hills are a given for breath-stopping sights of Jeruzalem. Jeruzalem is a notable Slovenian town in Podravje wine region - up there in the nation’s iconism with Lake Bled and Lljubljana. Part of the town heritage harks to the 2400 years of wine-making tradition that came before it since the surrounded hills were always a pristine condition for wine production.