Sarica Niculiţel

Styles

Principal grape varieties

Terroir

• The primary parent material from which the soils of the area have formed is loess, characteristic of the morphostructural unit of northern Dobrogea.
• The predominant soils belong to the Chernozem class, slightly compacted, with an alkaline reaction (pH 8.0–8.2) and a moderate calcium carbonate content, assigned to suitability class III.
• The climate is excessively continental, with low rainfall of under 400 mm per year, hot summers and cold winters, with a mean annual temperature just above 10 degrees Celsius.
• Proximity to the Danube and the Danube Delta to the north, the extensive forests to the south, and the predominantly northerly aspect of the area all moderate the effects of summer heat.
• The vineyards are situated on land at altitudes ranging from 50 to 200 metres, forming broad amphitheatres open towards the Danube valley, arranged around the Niculițel hills and the Măcin Mountains, remnants of the ancient Hercynian mountain chain.

• Historical records attest that in the years 1760–1770 Polish merchants were purchasing wine from the Sarica Niculițel vineyard area, transported along the Danube on ships loaded at Isaccea.
• In 1903 the northern Dobrogea region held 5,800 hectares of vines and achieved a production of 305,000 hectolitres of wine, ranking second in the country after the Putna area.

• Aligoté wines produced in northern Dobrogea are dry, with good acidity, pleasurable on the palate, and easily recognisable by their distinctive aromatic character, requiring no ageing.
• Red wines from Băbească Neagră are less deeply coloured and lighter in extract, yet pleasant on the nose and palate, while those from Merlot, Fetească Neagră, or Cabernet Sauvignon from the Măcin wine centre are recognisable by the flavours and aromas imparted by the local soil and climatic conditions.

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

All appellations in Romania

Sources

• National product specification (PDF) — onvpv
• eAmbrosia register (EU) — File number PDO-RO-A1575
• Official trade body site — Oficiul Național al Viei și Produselor Vitivinicole (ONVPV) — DOC Sarica Niculiţel