Crişana

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The Crișana region is situated between the Mureș, Someș, and Tisa rivers and the ridges of the Apuseni Mountains, with extreme points between 20°45' and 22°39' east longitude and 45°58' and 46°38' north latitude.
• The Crișul Repede zone is bounded to the north by Mount Șes, with gently rolling hills close to the plain and the influence of a Central European climate, which reduces thermal resources and supplements the rainfall regime.
• A decrease in precipitation during August, September, and October provides better conditions for soil warming and crop ripening, with the potential for good phytosanitary status of the grapes.
• The catchment areas of the Crișul Alb, Crișul Repede, and Crișul Negru rivers feature hilly intrusions and deep valleys, where autumn mornings are misty and humid, favouring the accumulation of fruity aromas in white-grape varieties.
• The hillside slopes are steeply inclined, with light skeletal alluvial soil over limestone or podzolised brown soil resting on gravels that warm up quickly, allowing Fetească Albă, Furmint, and Muscat Ottonel to achieve good grape ripeness.

• In the Beltiug, Rătești, and Ardud areas, winegrowers have excavated hundreds of cellars into the hillsides, arranged in two or three superimposed levels, so that entire hills appear to be composed of nothing but small houses of which only the doorways are visible.
• The hillside cellars were located near livestock markets, and a seller who was also a winegrower would take his customer to his own cellar and offer wine from his own vineyard harvest.
• From the very establishment of the Crișana DOC, white wines have predominated in cultivation, owing to the high acidity of the soils.

• From native white varieties such as Fetească Regală, Fetească Albă, Pinot gris, and Mustoasă de Măderat, fruity wines are produced with well-defined primary aromas that are typical of each variety.
• Blends of Burgund mare, Cabernet Sauvignon, and Merlot show balance, tannic structure, wild-berry aromas, and the velvety character characteristic of Cabernet Sauvignon, with good potential for ageing in barriques.

Facts drawn from the specification's terroir-link section by automatic interpretation — see the source.

All appellations in Romania

Sources

• Specification (EUR-Lex, single document)
• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-RO-A0105
• Official trade body site — Oficiul Național al Viei și Produselor Vitivinicole (ONVPV) — DOC Crişana