In The Glass: Miloš Stagnum Poluslatko 2003

It’s a fantastic thing when the wonderfully strange crosses your path by way of an Istrian visiting Spain. Such was the case with this bottle of what I can really only call dessert wine from Miloš. That’s not really the right word as it’s actually a “half-sweet” Croatian wine. These pop up here and there as there are many people in the region who like a much sweeter wine than the “dry” wines that most of us know. I find many of these putrid like the one at Dingač Vinarija because they artificially create it with added sugar, but this, this is something to take note of.

This slender bottle is 100% Plavac Mali and, as it should be, has an abv of 15.8%. That’s about where all normal descriptions stop though as the flavor is really something different than any wine I’ve had before. It’s like if you were to float your mouth in a bowl of emulsified dark berries while a cloud of almonds and hazelnuts descended on your nose. A bit surreal of a description? Oh yeah. As I can’t tell if I like this wine or I don’t, which ultimately means that I completely do, but in an academic way because it’s thoroughly and truly unique.

There’s no way I’d pair it with anything though as it has all these large, buoyant flavors that would trounce most any meal. For the end of a meal? Definitely. As different and odd as it is, cleansing the palate is something it does well. Not the least bit cheap though at 41€.

Read more about Miloš and other wineries in our Dalmatia enotourism guide