The parliamentary Republic of Croatia (Croatian: Hrvatska) in the transition zone between Central and South-Eastern Europe with its capital Zagreb covers 56,594 km². The national territory lies to the east of the Adriatic Sea and partly in the south-west of the Pannonian Plain. Croatia borders Slovenia to the north-west, Hungary to the north, Serbia to the north-east, Bosnia-Herzegovina to the east and Montenegro to the south-east. After the Second World War, Croatia became part of Yugoslavia in 1945. Following a referendum in 1991, Croatia declared its independence in June 1991, but this was not recognised by Serbia. This led to a war that lasted almost four years and only ended in 1995.
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The southernmost part of the coastal area (around Dubrovnik) is separated from the rest of Croatia for 7.5 kilometres by the municipality of Neum, which belongs to Bosnia-Herzegovina. This is why the Pelješac Bridge was built. There are 1,246 islands along the 1,777 km long Adriatic coast (526 km as the crow flies); only 47 are inhabited. This is why Croatia is known as the "land of 1,000 islands". The largest are Cres (406 km²), Krk (406 km²), Brač (395 km²), Hvar (300 km²), Pag (285 km²) and Korčula (276 km²). Viticulture is practised from Istria in the north to Dalmatia in the south and on some islands.
History
The country has a very old wine culture, as viticulture was practised along the Dalmatian Adriatic coast by the Illyrians as early as 1000 BC. The Greeks founded several colonies from 600 BC. The book "The Feast of the Scholars" dates back to this time and tells of wine production in Issa (island of Vis). A wine from here was even considered the best of the ancient wines of the time. The Roman Emperor Probus Marcus Aurelius (232-282) promoted viticulture in the 3rd century and the Slavs who settled here in the 7th century continued to cultivate it. The Croats developed viticulture in Dalmatia as an important economic sector alongside olive growing and fishing.
Around the year 1000, the Republic of Venice conquered Dalmatia and parts of Istria and incorporated the area into its colonial empire. The rule was retained for over 300 years. From the beginning of the 12th century, a personal union was established with the Kingdom of Hungary. In 1232, Cistercian monks founded a wine cellar in Kutjevo, which still exists today. In the middle of the 15th century, Hungary and Croatia suffered severe territorial losses due to the expansion of the Ottoman Empire. After many battles against the Ottomans, a large part of Croatia came under Habsburg administration in the 18th century.
Wine-growing regions
The country is characterised by a varied topography. The large plain in the centre of the country (part of the Pannonian Plain) is separated from the Adriatic coast by the Dinaric Alps (Dinarides), on which the many islands lie. The coastal strip consists of Dalmatia in the south and the large peninsula of Istria in the north. The vineyards here slope steeply down to the sea, so that there is optimal sunlight (exposure) for the vineyards. There are two clearly separate wine-growing regions. These are divided into many sub-regions and these are subdivided into growing areas.
Continental Croatia (Kontinentalna Hrvatska)
This northern region stretches from Slovenia in the west to the Serbian border in the east. It borders Bosnia-Herzegovina to the south. The climate here is continental with cool summers and sometimes very harsh winters. The region consists of the seven sub-regions of Moslavina, Plesivica, Podunavlje (Danube), Pokuplje (Kupa), Prigorje-Bilogora, Slavonija (Slavonia) and Zagorje-Medjimurje. Two thirds of the wines produced here are white.
Croatian Coastal Region (Primorska Hrvatska)
The southern region is best known for Dalmatia, where the vineyards stretch from Rijeka to Dubrovnik. In the far south, there is a border with Montenegro that is only 25 kilometres long. The climate here is much more humid and Mediterranean. The region is divided into five sub-regions: Dalmatinska Zagora (Dalmatian hinterland), Hrvatsko Primorje (coastal area with many...
