<\/figure><\/li><\/ul><\/figure>\n\n\n\nWithout yeasts, there would be no wine. Yeasts are microscopic creatures naturally located on the skin of grapes. Just like in bread or beer, they are responsible for the transformation from grape to wine. In a process called fermentation, they convert the sugar molecules in the grape into alcohol. And they are greatly responsible for the quality of the end product.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Even the best grapes won\u2019t make good wine if the fermentation process doesn\u2019t go well.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
So, good yeast cultures are essential for creating the pleasant aroma of wine we long for.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And, just as they do in their vineyards, the Veralda winemakers choose yeasts of an heirloom Istrian grape variety to curate their autochthonous wines. Yeasts from Malvasia grapes, to be more precise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tasting the wine<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Of course, the day couldn\u2019t have ended in any better way than by actually tasting<\/em> the sought-after wine. Olga pours me a glass of the light, golden Malvasia white wine, explaining to me how professional wine connoisseurs taste wine.<\/p>\n\n\n\nFirst the eyes: how does the wine look in the glass?<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Then, the nose. Gently rotating the glass in my hand, I breathe in deep the aroma of the wine. The scent is what makes you expectant of the final taste of the wine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
And a good wine doesn\u2019t disappoint.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With closed eyes, I take a sip of the cool liquid. Fresh, fruity, with a tangy note, the sip goes down my throat like a midsummer dream.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Tired, but happy, I go back home at the end of that day. My head is spinning with ideas, my fingers excited to write it all down. And my palate anticipating more of the incredible diversity wine has to offer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nUnveiling the mystery<\/h2>\n\n\n\n Finally, wine remains a bit of a mystery. Growing from dirt, grapevines have some of the longest roots of all plants. Bringing up pure water from the deep, they stretch their curled branches towards the hot, Istrian sun. Pruned and pampered all year long, they produce their sweet fruits, only to be turned into an astringent, but aromatic drink by microscopic creatures. In the end, it\u2019s a delight that can heighten moods and even serve as an aphrodisiac.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indeed, it is true what Romano Guardini wrote in his beautiful poem:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Bread is what Christ has become for us, and wine. Wine is boldness, joy above all earthly measures, fragrance and beauty, vastness and giving without boundaries. Zest of living and owning and offering.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n
And the best way to sustain this extraordinary variety of flavours is, well, to drink it!<\/p>\n\n\n\n
<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Choose good wine from local, heirloom varieties, support sustainably producing winemakers and delight in the diversity of flavour.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n \n\n\n\nPhotos by Naomi Bosch<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
It\u2019s a warm day in September as I set off to participate in the grape harvest. Here, on the gentle, green hills of Istria, vineyards and olive groves are spilled all over the landscape. Later during the course of the day, I’m entirely captivated by the diversity and mystery of excellent, wine-making in tune with nature…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2696,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","rank_math_lock_modified_date":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1,24,761],"tags":[80,45,786,784,785,783,782,780],"class_list":["post-1838","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-home","category-agriculture-environment","category-blog","tag-agrobiodiversity","tag-biodiversity","tag-heirloomvarieties","tag-istria","tag-landraces","tag-malvazija","tag-terroir","tag-wine"],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/max-delsid-yourTX6mGec-unsplash-1.jpg?fit=1000%2C1340&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pbc3oR-tE","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1838"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1838"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1838\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2696"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1838"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1838"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/plentiful-lands.com\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1838"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}