Croatian premium wine and Komarna Association create a JV Label for the USA

First Joint Venture Wine Label Created by Importer and Wine Association

Boston, Mass.,  February 5, 2020 – Croatian Premium Wine Imports, Inc. (CPWI), and the Komarna Seven (K7) Association, a winery association of the seven wineries in the Komarna Appellation in Dalmatia, Croatia, today announced availability of the Komarna Seven Plavac Mali label based on a joint venture between the importer in the US and the winery association. 

The Komarna Seven label, affectionately called K7, was created by involvement from all wineries in the Komarna Appellation. The first label produced K7 Plavac Mali, harvest of 2016. “In partnership with the Komarna wineries, we wanted to create a label specific for the American palate and the American market,” said Win Burke, CPWI’s co-founder and CEO. “This effort resulted in a very drinkable Plavac Mali with silky tannins and a special aroma characteristic of the Komarna Appellation.  I believe this is the first of its kind joint venture where the wineries and importer are creating the wines, and we look forward to the feedback from the American wine lovers who will be the only ones able to taste it.”

K7 Plavac Mali 2016 

Mihovil Stimac, the president of Komarna Seven Association commented “We always wanted to create a joint label, but we are a young appellation and association, so the opportunity didn’t present itself until the Croatian Premium Wine team suggested we create a label for the US market, and we are thrilled we were able to get this done for the 2020 introduction.” 

The winemakers from all wineries met for a blind tasting of several versions of blends created by Josip Volarevic, owner and oenologist of the Volarevic Winery, who is also a scientist and an academic, and is currently working on PhD research about Plavac Mali. Josip created various blends and the group than agreed on the best “blind blend.”  Then Marko Šuman, oenologist at the Terra Madre Winery, oversaw the whole production including blending of wines in tanks as well as the bottling, labeling etc. The Komarna Seven Association members and Croatian Premium Wine finalized the K7 logo and label and the wine was sent to the US at the end of 2019.

“I am proud of the tight collaboration of people from my hometown and delighted to bring to the US this remarkable bottle of Plavac Mali – – which to me represents the aromas of Dalmatia,” said Mirena Bagur, co-founder and VP of Brand Management at CPWI. “This is an elegant wine, drinkable at opening.  Within a few minutes one can taste the typical jammy raisin flavor of Plavac Mali. We have shared samples with a few key wine bars, restaurants and stores, and the best feedback from them is that the wine is already on the shelves and on the menus.”

K7 Notes

K7 Plavac Mali is an unusual collaboration of the seven wineries of the Komarna Appellation, and blends Plavac Mali in the same style by different wineries.  This is the 2016 harvest, where the first sniff of the wine tells there is something interesting inside and gives aromas of blackberry, plum pepper, and dark chocolate. This is a dry red wine with 14.5% alcohol level.  It is bottled in 0.75L bottles. Serving is suggested at the temperature of 64-68 F. 

“With the first sips of K7, one can taste the tannins with a touch of a vanillas, so this wine is elegant with a complex body,” said Vedrana Martinovic-Trutina, head of operations for the Terra Madre Winery, and a daughter of one of the three family owners. “The wine was in oak barrels for 24 months, in a combination of Croatian, American and French oak, so within about 10 minutes, one can notice a flavor of sweet tobacco with vanilla. With that, the wine pairs well with robust cheese, venison and steaks.”

Ms. Vedrana Martinovic-Trutina arrived in the US to introduce the wine on behalf of Komarna 7 to the Boston sommelier and wine writers’ community. For any media inquiries, please contact CPWI.

About Croatian Premium Wine Imports (CPWI)

Based in Boston, Mass., CPWI imports, distributes and promotes boutique Croatian wines in the US. Currently representing wineries from the Dubrovnik county in Dalmatia, including all seven wineries in the Komarna region, the K7 Association, they continue to expand their portfolio of boutique wines that provide the distinctive high-quality taste of Croatia, including Plavac Mali, Zinfandel and Pošip. For more information, inquiries or to place an online order, visit www.croatianpremiumwine.com/shop-online,  contact them at [email protected] and follow them at Linkedin, Twitter and Facebook.

About Komarna Seven Wine Association

The Komarna winegrowing area in the Dubrovnik-Neretva County, Dalmatia, Croatia was planted in 2008, while in April 2013 received its official name – the Komarna Appellation. It consists of seven wineries which have created the Komarna Seven (K7) Association. The wineries have a rarely-seen collaborative approach to working together on all elements of wine production, including jointly installing a weather station, collaborating on irrigation, and other segments of the wine business, including now distribution to the US. All seven wineries have earned the coveted EU EKO certification for organic, sustainable farming.