Hvar Hills Winery at Dalmatian Wine Icons 2025

Less Power, More Story in the Glass

Lauba in Zagreb hosted the 11th edition of Vinart Grand Tasting on March 6 and 7. With more than 160 wineries from Croatia and neighboring countries, around 5,000 visitors, and hundreds of wines available for tasting, this year’s Vinart once again confirmed its status as the most relevant wine event in the region. The presence of four Masters of Wine, Caroline Gilby MW, Dirceu Vianna Junior MW, Wojciech Bonkowski MW, and Ivan Barbić MW, also clearly reflects the growing international interest in the Croatian wine scene.

A Focus on Precision and Terroir

What defined this year’s Vinart was a shift in winemaking philosophy. While recent years often saw powerful wines and pronounced oak dominate the glass, 2026 brought freshness, precision, and drinkability to the forefront. Less extraction, more balance, and refined acidity.

HoReCa professionals and wine enthusiasts seem to agree on one thing: Croatian wines have never been more stylistically coherent while remaining so diverse in character. The focus is increasingly shifting towards individual vineyard sites. Winemakers are no longer speaking only about regions, but about specific locations and soils. Terroir is slowly moving beyond being a marketing buzzword and becoming something you can genuinely taste in the glass.

Indigenous grape varieties are also establishing themselves as true brands. Pošip, Grk, Malvazija, and Plavac Mali are no longer simply local favorites, but stand confidently alongside international classics. At the same time, a growing number of winemakers are embracing more natural approaches, placing authenticity ahead of technological perfection.

What Vinart Means to Us

For a winery like Hvar Hills, whose identity is rooted in the limestone soils and sun-drenched vineyards of specific Dalmatian sites, Vinart serves as a kind of litmus test. It is a platform that allows us to receive direct feedback from wine professionals and compare our wines with the best on the market, in real time and without filters.

This year’s event provided an opportunity to present new vintages defined by this emerging wave of elegance, without sacrificing the power and character naturally associated with southern Dalmatia. We are encouraged to see that the direction we believe in, with an emphasis on terroir and balance, is becoming increasingly present across the wider wine scene.

More Than a Tasting

Vinart offers what it has become known for: direct contact with winemakers and a concentration of quality that is difficult to find in one place. Having the winemaker pour the wine into your glass and explain the philosophy behind the label creates a connection that goes beyond scores and ratings.

In just two days, visitors could experience a cross-section of Croatian wine, from mineral-driven Škrlet and fresh Malvazija to complex Plavac Mali and elegant red blends. If you missed it, you missed one of the best overviews of Croatia’s wine scene you can experience in one place.

See you next year.