There isn’t much beyond the quiet town of Slovenska Bistrica in Slovenia’s north-west. Rolling vineyards, a few scattered houses, and some stunningly beautiful forest. Look a little closer though, and you will find some of the most dedicated and talented artisans in Slovenia. Don’t just take my word for it, read on for three men doing good things in the area.

HEAPS GOOD WINE

This is the narrative; Nick moves from New Zealand to Slovenia and buys an old vineyard. A year or so later, the resulting wine tasted bloody good. While I’m skipping some crucial details here, we were lucky enough to spend an afternoon with Nick on what must have been the windiest day in Slovenian history exploring his cellars and sampling some of his wines. The property that he works from is beautiful, and the resulting wine even better. He makes a range of excellent wines, focussing on a minimal intervention style, and giving the grapes and wine what they need. During the time we spent at his vineyard we tasted some truly excellent wine, with a particular shout out going to his 2017 Pinot Noir and the 2018 Pinot Gris - both are stupendously good. Nick is a quietly spoken guy, but he makes wines that more than speak for themselves, they are balanced, fruit-forward and taste as far removed from the mass-produced table-wine that permeates Europe. This is wine that is truly special. While writing about wine can easily become a ludicrously pretentious activity, I think his website possibly describes what he does best: “The rights vines on the right sites with low yields… Let the vineyard speak.’

That’s the kind of philosophy I can get behind.

The saddest part for me is that I can’t get this wine back in Australia. However, you can find out more about Nick and his wine over at his website here and his wines are stocked at the following locations in Slovenia - TOZD (Ljubljana), Pavus (Laško), Restavracija Mak (Maribor), TaBar (Ljubljana), Wine Bar Suklje (Ljubljana, Gostilna Francl (Celje).

Contact: info@hgw.si

Website: http://hgw.si/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/heapsgoodwine/

Address: Ritoznoj 46, 2310 Slovenska Bistrica (visits by appointment only)

ŠtokWenzel

Aleš Wenzel embodies everything great about the up-cycling movement. Primarily working with old wine barrels, he crafts furniture and accessories that are both unique and beautiful. Visiting his workshop, we were able to see the passion that he brings to each and every piece, whether it be a lamp, cleverly ensconced in the lats from an old wine barrel, or a stand-up table with built-in wine rack below that feels as solid as the earth itself. Aleš blends the line between function and art with every piece - it is clear that every bit of ŠtokWenzel furniture is a piece that he has laboured over, ensuring that it is as beautiful as it is necessary. Whether it was the curved wine racks that double as a lamp, or the sunglasses made from old wine barrels, each piece was something that I desperately wanted to buy (but couldn’t put in my backpack for another 8 months of travelling). Regardless, the furniture and accessories Aleš is making in Slovenska Bistrica radiate warmth and were utterly stunning to look at and hold.

When we visited, we were lucky enough to be shown around the disused cellar below the main house, an area that Aleš was in the process of renovating, but will become a show-room in the not too distant future. The work Aleš is doing here is one of love - it is clear that he cares deeply for the land he lives on and is building something special here. If you’re looking for a unique piece, or something specific, check out his website over here.

Contact: ales@stokwenzel.com

Website: https://www.stokwenzel.com/eng/index.html

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/stokwenzel/

Address: Ritoznoj 9, 2310 Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenia

Zorjan

If there is a man whom embodies what is special about Slovenska Bistrica it is Bozidar Zorjan. Welcoming us into his house at 7 pm on a blustery Monday evening (we were with Aleš from ŠtokWenzel) he started off the visit by leading us us to the fields beyond the house, where a series of pygmy sheep were roaming the fields. He spoke to us of how the sheep roam freely, feeding at times from the vines, but helping to fertilize the fields. After, we were taken to a room full of fermenting vegetables, dried herbs and preserved grasses - all of which were grown on the property, and will be used before the next harvest to revitalize the soil. The work Zorjan does is fully ‘cyclical’ he tells us we try one of wines, a stupendously tasty skin-contact made from chardonnay. Nothing that doesn’t come from the farm is added to the wine, the wine merely grows as it needs to in barriques, buried in the backyard, resulting in the most stunning truly natural wine I’ve ever come across.

Over the course of a few hours we sat with Zorjan, discussing topics as far ranging as philosophy to wine making trends across the world. We were lucky enough to gain several of his insights into his process as we tasted his stunning Riesling, Chardonnay and Sauvignon - all skin-contact, bodied, and tasting good enough to make me want to believe in a God. This is a guy who was into the biodynamic process long before it became famous, having worked in the same way since the winery came into his possession in the 1980’s. He holds his wine to an exacting standard, but gives it the time he deserves, knowing that the only way to make truly beautiful wine is to allow the wine to be - he adds nothing, and merely waits for the wine to be right. The only way to truly understand his wine is to pay him a visit at his farm, which can be organised directly though the man himself. Don’t turn up without organizing an appointment via e-mail first.

Address: Tinjska Gora 90, 2316 Zgornja Ložnic

Contact: bozidar.zorjan@siol.net

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