Most famous wine regions in the world.
It’s understandable if you haven’t heard of Oltenia Hills, a wine region in Romania. Thanks to cultural barriers, Romania is only now starting to show up on the radar for wine lovers around the world. However, it has long been a favorite region among those who have visited.
Situated in the south and east of Romania, the Oltenia Hills are part of a larger range called the Southern Carpathian Mountains. The hills provide ideal conditions for growing grapes that are primarily used in red wines that feature robust flavors with hints of cherry and blackberry.
If you haven’t tried white grape varieties from this region, give one a try next time you see it on a menu. Some restaurants specialize in these grapes—if they do, they’re sure to offer an amazing experience!
Wine everything is produced in Oltenia hills.
When the sun’s rays reach the grapes, they ripen and eventually become grape clusters. When you pick the ripe grapes and take them to a vineyard, you can begin the process of making wine.
Vineyards are special areas where winemakers crush grapes together into juice so that it ferments. The fermentation process is important because that’s what gives wine its alcohol content!
The region is part of Romania.
So Romania is not exactly the first country that comes to mind when you’re thinking of wine, right? Well it turns out that this European country actually has three main regions where wine grapes are cultivated, one of which is Oltenia Hills. The other two regions are Maramures counties and Banat mountains.
It’s near the Black Sea.
Craiova, the capital of Dolj County and third most populated city in Romania, lies in this region. The city has a temperate climate with an annual average temperature of 10.4 °C and is located in the immediate proximity to the Danube River.
This remarkable geographical location makes Craiova a prime destination when visiting Oltenia Hills.
There are many phases of viticulture in Oltenia hills.
Romania has a checkered past with respect to viticulture. During the communist period, the bulk of all wine was made from industrial farm products. This had some serious and lasting negative effects on Romania’s viticultural industry.
Thankfully, towards the end of communism, this began to change and a new trend emerged: small-scale wine production by family farmers and vineyards run by young grape growers in their teens and twenties. The results have been nothing short of amazing: Romania is home to some of the best wines in Europe—and for good reason!
The Oltenia Hills is one region that stands out above all others because it is relatively free from any industrialized farming practices and has many small vineyards that date back centuries. The grapes grown here are mostly white varieties: Măceșu, Relieciu (Riesling), Fetească Rosu (Rosé), Albine și Albinele Grasă (Gamay). These grapes are also used to make local brandy known as Brânză de Constantinopol or Brânza de Buzău.
It’s very mountainous area with many river valleys.
Several of the wine regions of Romania are located in the southern part of the country, with Carpathian Mountains surrounding them on all sides, making for a very hilly and mountainous area. This is certainly true of Oltenia Hills, which sits at an elevation of about 800 meters above sea level, but it’s not all mountains; there are many river valleys throughout the region as well. The Danube river flows through Oltenia Hills and its tributaries (smaller rivers that flow into it) make up some of the most fertile land in the region.
Vineyards are also in Maramures counties and Banat mountains.
The vineyards are also shared by several Maramures counties, but the soil and climate conditions in this region are completely different. The vines grow on lower slopes and in valleys, protected from the cold winds by the mountains. The grapes grow slowly, developing a thick skin that gives them more intense aromas.
Each year during harvest time (usually around September), local traditions help to make this region one of the most beautiful places in Romania. To celebrate the end of a year’s work, families get together for traditional food and wine in the vineyards that have been passed down from generation to generation. These family celebrations can last up to 3 days, mixing with other celebrations taking place in nearby villages.
In August and September you can visit one of these festivals and see how Romanians party! I recommend visiting Baia Mare and Leordina – they have some great festivals where you will surely enjoy fantastic food (especially cheese) and wine!
The place you live has special importance for the wines made from its grapes.
We can start with the fact that the climate in Oltenia is Mediterranean, which means that it’s warm and dry most of the time. This can make for some pretty hot summers, but there are also cool and wet autumns. These climates help define the stages of a wine-making season. The grapes ripen rapidly when they are watered, but then slowly go through changes as they dry out and mature. In Romania there are five main kinds of grapes whose wines make up our vibrant wine culture: Tempranillo (Tamarind), Cabernet Sauvignon (Sour Cherry), Merlot (Blackberry), Carmenere (Grapefruit) and Malbec (Pomegranate).