spaswinefood: Travels to the land of dreams, Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea with #winelovers friends

Returning to Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Romania with #winelover friends on our Oltenia Wine Tour was indeed special. Segarcea means “the land of dream”. This area has certainly lived up to its name over time. Segarcea, one of the twelve domains created by parliament in 1884 during the administration of Carol I, King of Romania, prospered under the Royal House. They established a winery, and planted 60 grape varieties in 300 hectares of vineyards. In 1929 Segarcea was granted the right to produce Controlled Denomination of Origin (DOC) wines. Their wines became highly prized internationally, wining gold medals in Paris in 1936.

Return to Domeniul Coroanei © Spaswinefood

August at Domeniul Coroanei © Spaswinefood

I still remember Spaswinefood's visit to Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea in August 2015. It was an awesome introduction to Romania’s wine world; so the opportunity to return last November with #winelover friends was indeed the best of dreams.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea: Challenges and Dreams

The domain during Communist rule underwent a period when productivity was more important than quality. The winery went downhill. In fact this time has been described as a period of decay. Fortunately in 2002 Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea was taken over by the Anghel family, Romanian entrepreneurs. Today the domain is in good hands and happy dreams have returned to this historic property. The Anghel’s are committed to both (1) restoring and preserving royal values, and (2) achieving the highest quality of wine making in Romania. We were able to get a glimpse of this during our #winelover visit.

Returning to Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea in November certainly brought back memories.

Driving into Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea Vineyard in August © Spaswinefood

We drove through the expansive vineyards, then toured the winery, and tasted the wines.

Domeniul Coroanei Vineyard View © Spaswinefood

It is hard to beat those autumn colors at Segarcea. I could not resist taking a peek at the vineyards.

Domeniul Coroanei Vineyard in November © Spaswinefood

November Vineyards, Domeniul Coroanei © Spaswinefood

Without doubt their expansive vineyards are awesome to visit any time of the year.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea Wines

Our Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea wine tasting included wines made with international grape varieties, and Romanian indigenous grape varieties.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea Wines © Spaswinefood

Some of the wines that I tasted made with international grapes included white wines, such as Pinot Gris, Viognier and red wines (Cabernet Sauvignon and Marselan). Marselan is an international grape variety, which is a cross of Cabernet Sauvignon and Grenache.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Pinot Gris 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Viognier 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Cabernet Sauvignon 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Marselan 2013 © Spaswinefood

This time I tasted a special Marselen, a Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Principesa Margareta Red, 2011, which is a barreled Marselan.

Domeniul Coroanei, Margareta Red 2011 © Spaswinefood

There were also white wine blends, such as a Domeniul Coroanei, Principesa Margareta White 2013.

Domeniul Coroanei, Principesa Margareta White 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Principesa Margareta White 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei, Principesa Margareta White 2013 is a blend of Viognier, Pinot Gris and Chardonnay.

Some of the wines that I tasted were made with Romanian indigenous white grapes, such as Fetească Albă, and Tămâioasă Românească.

Domeniul Coroanei, Fetească Albă © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Tămâioasă Românească 2013 © Spaswinefood

There was also a white wine blend, Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Onoare.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Onoare © Spaswinefood

Onoare, Romanian for honor, is a blend of Fetească Albă, Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, and Pinot Gris. It is from their Minima Moralia brand series. Minima Moralia and Vardo are two of Domeniul Coroanei special brands.

Domeniul Coroanei, Minima Moralia, Hope 2014 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei, Tămaioasă Rosé 2014 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei, Vardo Patima Serii © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Minima Moralia, Gratitude 2008 © Spaswinefood

From Minima Moralia brand I tasted 1) Hope, a dry rosé wine produced from Pinot Noir, with skin contact maceration Pinot Gris and barreled Cabernet Sauvignon time; and 2) Gratitude made with Cabernet Sauvignon.

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Minima Moralia Cabenet Sauvignon 2013 © Spaswinefood

Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, Minima Moralia Cabenet Sauvignon 2013 © Spaswinefood

The Vardo Partim Serii, Flame of the Night wine that I tasted is a dry red wine. This wine is made with Fetească Neagră, a Romanian indigenous red grape.

It was an exciting lineup of Domeniul Coroanei Wines.

Before the wine tasting we visited the tank room.

There are regular sized tanks and some very large tanks.

We also took a peek in the barrel room.

Travels on the Oltenia Wine Route

After a very pleasant and informative visit at Domeniul Coroanei we continued our #winelover explorations along the Oltenia Wine Route. We spent the night at Avincis in the Dragasani, the Napa Valley of Romania. That delightful evening over dinner we were introduced to Dragsani wines. Spaswinefood will write more about this gastronomic affair later. For now let me reflect briefly on our Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, the land of dreams, where great wines have returned.

Today Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea, like many Romanian wineries, is undergoing an exciting rebirth. This rebirth has brought back dreams to this historic wine estate. I would like to give special thanks to Razvan Stoenescu and George Wine, for being such wonderful hosts during our #winelover vine-filled explorations in Romania. I invite you to join me in my travels in Romania and elsewhere at Spaswinefood.

Sharon

November 2017

Craiova, Romania

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Friday, January 5, 2018

Travels to the land of dreams, Domeniul Coroanei Segarcea with #winelovers friends

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