Zlatan Otok tasting

Zlatan Otok is one of the more famous Croatian winemakers. The winery is on the island of Hvar, a two hour ferry ride from Split. The winery has obviously been successful, as they now have an excellent small hotel by the sea (where we staid for 4 nights) and a great restaurant (more information from http://www.zlatanotok.hr/ ). The restaurant offers a tasting of all the wines of the current vintages as well as a possibility to visit the wine cellar below the restaurant, which is actually below the sea with a window out below the waves of the Adriatic Sea. The tasting itself was not free and was rather impersonal, but nice in any case. The bartender serving the wines was somewhat knowledgable about the wines, but he did ask others for information when he did not know. There was no spittoon available and we had to ask for smaller pours as the amount they were pouring was quite substantial. In the end they charged us for one person’s tasting as they said we had about half of what we were supposed to.

• 2010 Zlatan Otok Zlatan Hvar 84 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Hvar

  A blend of Chardonnay, Zilavka and Muscat. The nose had fresh green apples, some lime, a bit weak on the palate, light acidity and a rather light feeling on the palate. Not very inspiring.

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• 2010 Zlatan Otok Bogdanuša Sveta Nedjelja 85 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Hvar

  A rare grape variety Bogdanuša which is apparently going extinct. Another fresh wine with appley smells and slight hint of apricots. The palate is very light, almost airy, light acidity, kind of watered down apricots but with some earthiness and minerality to make it more interesting. Unfortunately nobody will miss this variety if it does go extiinct.

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• 2010 Zlatan Otok Pošip Vrhunsko Vino 89 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Split-Omiš-Makarska

  Mmm, this was excellent, good aromas of apricots and peaches, expressive and moreish on the nose. The palate follows with lots of apricot, an oiliness that reminds me of Viognier, an excellent wine!

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• 2009 Zlatan Otok Zlatan Plavac Grand Cru Sveta Nedjelja 88 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Hvar

  The entry level red. Distinct Plavac Mali on the nose, lingonberry as well as a touch of licorice and toffee. Sees only old oak though. The palate has quite a bit of tannins, good lingonberry fruit with nice acidity, ready to go now, no need for cellaring further. Very tasty! If I could take back lots of wine to Finland, I would take a case of this for week day quaffing.

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• 2009 Zlatan Otok Ostatak Bure 89 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Split-Omiš-Makarska

  From a vineyard on the mainland, where they let the Bura wind (which can reach hurricane force) rip through the vines and then collect what is left for the wine. The nose is very aromatic, with tons of lingonberry and dried figs. The palate has lots of tannins, good acidity with excellent fruit like lingonberry. Good now, but wouldn’t suffer at all with a couple of years in the cellar. Had this later with dinner, grilled scampi, with which it went surprisingly well!

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• 2009 Zlatan Otok Crljenak Kaštelanski Vinogorje Makarska 89 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Split-Omiš-Makarska

  This grape is supposedly the parent to Zinfandel, endemic to Croatia. Very different to the Plavac Malis we also tasted. The nose is quite brawny with lots of dried figs, a bit porty in character. The palate follows, also a bit porty, somewhat sweet, darker fruit, blackberries. Very good in any case and ready to go now!

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• 2008 Zlatan Otok Zlatan Plavac Barrique Sveta Nedjelja 90 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Hvar

  Back to Plavac Mali and a wine that I have had before. This bottle had been open for over 24 hours, and was really good now. Very distinct lingonberry with licorice, a hint of blueberry and orange zest, deep and good. The palate had tongue coating tannins but with refined lingonberry and a depth that I like. Very tasty and clearly this wine still needs another 4-5 years in the cellar to be ready.

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• 2008 Zlatan Otok Zlatan Plavac Grand Cru Sveta Nedjelja 90 Points

  Croatia, Dalmatia, Srednja i južna Dalmacija, Hvar

  OK, now we are on a serious wine here, this definitely needs to sleep for another 5-10 years. Heavy bacon on the nose with typical Plavac Mali lingonberry in the background. Very aromatic and expressive, quite a serious nose. The palate is very tasty now, with refined lingonberry and tongue ripping tannins. Not ready yet to be enjoyed, except maybe with a greasy steak to cut into the tannins.

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In summary, the white wines were a bit of a disappointment (lacked acidity) except the Pošip, which was great. All the red wines were delicious, excellently made, had great acidity and were very typical. Zlatan Otok is definitely a recommended buy if you want to try a good, typical southern Croatian wine. We tried all the current cuvées except for their entry level white, which has the same varieties as the Zlatan Hvar.