Newcomer Viticola Corcova launches premium wines

After introducing its first wines in June 2010, Viticola Corcova has launched a premium collection under the Dealul Racoveanu (the Racoveanu Hill) label. It features three varieties, Cabernet Sauvignon-Merlot, Pinot Noir and Chardonnay from the 2009 production, which has matured in wooden oak barrels. Part of the same collection, a premium Syrah variety was launched last year.

As with its already launched mainstream varieties, the premium wines will mostly be sold through horeca with prices ranging from RON 80 to RON 150 in restaurants, but also through specialized wines shops. Serban Damboviceanu, co-owner of Viticola Corcova, told BR that despite the economic slowdown, the premium wine market had grown in the past year. “There is a positive trend. I see a lot of people turning to quality wines and this is a very good thing. Also, a lot of young people are showing interest in finding out more about wine, its tradition and how to drink it. They are learning that wine is more than a simple beverage. The trend is definitely positive but we have to continue to promote wine, especially quality ones,” he said.

The co-owner added that the company has plans to enter large retail chains by launching a new wine brand in the future. It has already started exporting, so far to France and Poland, while in the years to come the focus will be on the local market. Damboviceanu said the target is to take exports to around 25-30 percent of total production. This year Corcova will produce around 250,000 bottles of wine, mainstream and premium. As for the winemaker’s signature, Damboviceanu said that Corcova wines strive to preserve the identity of the grapes by rendering as loyally as possible the “terroir”.

About EUR 4 million has been invested so far in the company, which was set up in 2005 by its owners, Romanian Serban Damboviceanu and Frenchman Michel Roy. The two met in France while working for the Edouard Leclerc retail chain. In 2005 the company bought more than 50 hectares of land on the grounds of the former Corcova State Agricultural Enterprise (IAS) in Mehedinti county, south-western Romania. The location has been planted with vines since the 15th century, and in the interwar period it was the property of Prince Anton Bibescu.

Over the next few years the land was planted with Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir, Muscat Ottonel and Chardonnay strains. Except for Syrah, the strains had been cultivated in Corcova since the time of the Bibescu family estate, and were included in the DOC authorized strains for the Mehedinti-Corcova area.