With its deeply rooted wine culture, distinctive grape varieties and diverse terroirs, North Macedonia is now emerging as a hotbed of forward-thinking producers for whom quality is paramount
A country at the crossroads, North Macedonia lies at the meeting point of Mediterranean and continental climates, where Eastern and Western cultures converge at the junction of historic trade routes. Its wine industry has recently reached a crossing point, too, switching from producing bulk wines to quality bottled wines with their own distinctive regional personalities.
Wine is incredibly important in North Macedonia, providing 20% of the agricultural GDP and a living for about 20,000 registered grape-growers, and 74 wineries, from its 28,000ha of winevariety vineyards. Increasingly it’s about much more than economics, however, and involves capturing the climate, soils, weather, grapes and culture in a glass. It is summed up in a local proverb that says: ‘If you want to get to know a nation well, sit at their table and drink their wine.’
From ancient roots
North Macedonia has been shaped by diverse cultures over the centuries, including Roman, Byzantine, Slavic and Turkish influences. At one time, the kingdom of Macedonia was the most powerful state in the world, first under Philip II of Macedon (359-336 BC), then under his son, Alexander the Great (336323 BC), until his early death. The stories say that both rewarded their soldiers with wine from this region to celebrate victories and to commiserate after rare defeats. The ancient kingdom covered a large land area that is now shared with Bulgaria and Greece, but North Macedonia sees itself as the spiritual descendant of this historic empire.
Wine in North Macedonia is even older – archaeological evidence goes back to the cult of Dionysus in the 13th century BC. Wine continued to be important in ancient Roman times when this land was famous for its rich, powerful wines – vines are depicted in the fabulous mosaics at the Stobi archaeological site. This continued through the arrival of Christianity and the Byzantine era. The Ottomans ruled for five centuries, suppressing wine, but then a revival of organised winemaking began around the region of Tikveš in 1885.
After World War II, Macedonia joined the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes, then became part of Yugoslavia. During this era, North Macedonia was the driver of volume wine production in the republic. This was a time when high yields of up to 40 tonnes per hectare were common – famously, one year the harvest was so large it had to be stored in the town swimming pool in Kavadarci, in the Tikveš region. The break-up of Yugoslavia and the advent of North Macedonia’s independence in 1991 marked the beginning of a new era. The country’s first private winery, Bovin, was
