Richard Stávek is experimental and insightful, producing wine in the South Moravia region of the Czech Republic since the 1990’s. Stávek has 15 hectares of land in South Moravia, 4.5 of which are dedicated to his vineyard. The rest is home to animal life, sea buckthorn bushes, berries for brandy, and more. His vineyard is home to mostly indigenous grape varieties, many of which are field blended in his wines.

He is a co-founder of Autentisté, a group of natural winemakers in the Czech Republic rooted in Central European tradition and focused on producing terroir-driven wines. In a region primarily known in the beverage world for beer, Stávek and his fellow winemakers take pride in producing wines truly representative of their land. Autentisté insists on low-yield production using hand-picked grapes, with organic farming practices and, in the cellar, natural fermentation with no added yeasts, low sulfur, and no genetically modified organisms or additives.

Single vineyard cuvée of old-vine Pinot blanc and Chardonnay with tiny yields – only about a thousand bottles come from this hectare (=2.47 acres).

Grapes: dominantly Pinot blanc with a little bit of Chardonnay (5-15%)

Vineyard: Odměry, 1ha plot on loess. Northern, north-east and east exposure
1 ha. Planted in 1977, farmed organically (certified) by Richard himself.

Making of: Grapes are hand-harvested and whole bunches are fermented in old open-topped barrels for ~20 days with only indigenous yeast. The grapes are foot-stomped after fermentation completes, and the wine then spends 10 months in old 600-liter barrels, with regular batonnage. Little to no sulfur added at bottling, unfiltered and unfined.

Personality: vivid and textural! Beautiful bright orange hue, pronounced mineral notes mingling with citrus fruit and a bit of spice. Great tannic structure and refreshing acidity make this wine a real treat.

–Jenny & Francois