Mavrud
Mavrud (Bulgarian: мавруд, from Greek, mavro, "black") is a red wine grape that is used as both a blending grape and for varietal wines, indigenous to the region of Thrace in Bulgaria.
The grape has been described as a characterful, low-yielding, small-berried and late-ripening grape capable of producing tannic, spicy wine with a potential for ageing.[1][2][3]
Contents
History[edit]
Regarded as one of the most highly esteemed local wines, Mavrud vineyards are mainly found around Asenovgrad and Perushtitsa, as well as more rarely near Pazardzhik, Stara Zagora and Chirpan.[citation needed]
There is speculation amongst grape growers that Mavrud may be an ancient clone of Mourvedre, imported into Bulgaria by the Romans.[citation needed]
Tale[edit]
A legend that the oenophiles of the Mavruk wine like to repeat in order to explain the restoration of this locality as wine-growing country[4] was that during the reign of Khan Krum of Bulgaria, all vineyards were ordered destroyed. Later, a lion escaped from its cage and terrorized the city. However, a fearless young man named Mavrud (now the name of a wine grape) confronted and slew the lion. The king summoned Mavrud's mother to learn the source of such courage. She said she had secretly saved a vine, made wine, and that this was the source of Mavrud's bravery. Khan Krum ordered the vineyards replanted.[5][4]
In the original Bulgarian version the legend says it was a monster called the lamyata (ламята) which was vanquished, according to one book on wine.[6]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Johnson, Hugh; Robinson, Jancis (2005). The World Atlas of Wine (5th ed.). London: Mitchell Beazley. p. 256. ISBN 1-84000-332-4.
- ^ Robinson, Jancis, ed. (1999). "Mavrud". The Oxford Companion to Wine (2nd ed.). winepros.com.au. Archived from the original on 2012-03-14.
- ^ Stevenson, Tom (2005). The Sotheby’s Wine Encyclopedia (4th ed.). London: Dorling Kindersley. p. 414. ISBN 0-7566-1324-8.
- ^ a b Šiškova, Elena; Ivanova, Marii︠a︡; Dimova, Rosit︠s︡a (1998), Destination: Bulgaria, Selekta, p. 87
- ^ Kay, Annie (2008), Bulgaria: The Bradt Travel Guide, Bradt Travel Guides, p. 226
- ^ Chalkov, Ivan (2001), Kak da napravim vino Как да направим вино [How to make wine], DIONIS, p. 7
