SLOVENIA - Croatia and Slovenia - page 800

Goriška Brda also produces a good white using the rebula grape (perhaps better
knownbyitsItalianname, ribolla gialla ).Abitfarthersouth(andstillwithinPrimor-
ska),theKarstgrowslotsof refošk (refosco) grapes,whichthriveiniron-richredsoil
(terra rossa). Thetopproductistheextremelyfull-bodied,“big” teran —infusedwith
a high lactic acid content that supposedly gives the wine healing properties. Nearby
coastal areas (around Koper) also grow refošk, along with the white malvazija grape
that's also widely used in Croatian Istria.
To the northeast, near Hungary, is the Podravje region (the Drava River Valley),
dominated by white grapes—especially laški riesling (known internationally as
Welsh riesling) and renski riesling (what we'd call simply riesling). The steeper right
bank of the Drava River is known as Haloze, while the left bank produces Slovenske
Gorice (“Slovenian Hills”). If you're visiting Ptuj or Maribor, these are the wines
you'll see on local menus.
And finally, a bit to the south of Podravje is the Posavje region (the Lower Sava
River Valley, bordering Croatia). This area—which is still focused on quantity over
quality—produces both white and red wines; it's known mostly for the light, russet-
colored cvi č ek wine (a blend of red and white grapes).
With any type of Slovenian wine, vrhunsko (premium) is a mark of quality, while
kakovostno is a notch down, and namizno is a table wine. Other key terms are similar
to Croatian: suho (dry), sladko (sweet), and pol - (half).
SlovenepronunciationisverysimilartoCroatian(see here ) .Remember, c ispronounced
“ts” (as in “cats”). The letter j is pronounced as “y”—making “Ljubljana” easier to say than
it looks (lyoob-lyee-AH-nah). Slovene only has one diacritical mark: the strešica, or “little
roof.” This makes č sound like “ch,” š sound like “sh,” and ž sound like “zh” (as in “meas-
ure”). The letter v is pronounced like “u”—so the Slovenian word avto sounds like “auto,”
and the mountain Triglav is pronounced “TREE-glau” (rhymes with “cow”).
The only trick: As in English, which syllable gets the emphasis is unpredictable.
Slovenes use many of the same words as Croatians, but put the stress in much different
places.
Learn some key Slovenian phrases (see the Slovenian survival phrases on here ) . You'll
make more friends and your trip will go more smoothly.