The grapevine is probably one of the oldest agricultural crops, and wine is one of the most popular drinks today. It is so popular that February 18 has been declared International Wine Day.
Trnjak, along with the better-known Žilavka and Blatina, is another autochthonous grape variety in Herzegovina. Very little is known about his origin. One story says that it was brought to our region by the legendary Knights Templar while they were moving towards the Holy Land in the Crusades. And another story says that it was brought by the French during Napoleon's occupation of Dalmatia.
Trnjak is resistant to diseases and drought, and old winegrowers used to call it black Žilavka because of these characteristics. It was planted because of its role in the pollination of Blatina, which has a functionally female flower, so it cannot pollinate itself.
The quality of the wine is influenced by the general climatic conditions, the method of processing and the soil on which it grows, as well as the proportion of sugar in the fruit at the time of harvest. Today, Trnjak increasingly comes out of the shadows and acquires a special status. This variety produces full-bodied, ruby-red, extractive wines with huge potential and aging in wooden barrels.
(Željka Šaravanja)
