Slovenia: Edi Simčič, one of the stars of Brda
The region is Goriška Brda, and I’m here to visit one of the top producers, Edi Simčič.
This was my second visit here, and I met with Aleks Simčič and his two sons, Jure and Jakob, who are both now fully involved in the business.
Aleks’ father was Edi who the winery is named after. Edi and his wife worked in the cooperative, which was one of the main employers in the area. His father had started work at the age of 15 because the economic situation was bad. He retired at the age of 54, and turned his attention to the vineyards that were on Alek’s mother’s side of the family. There was no one to run them because her brothers had left for Argentina in the economic migration that took place after the war.
He made 4000 bottles in his cellar in 1989, and then things gradually developed. The first official wine was in 1991, and then the first cellar was built in 1996. The current cellar was built in 2018.
The Edi Simčič winery now has 13.5 hectares spread across a number of plots, and is in the process of planting 1.3 ha more. Current production is 70-75 000 bottles a year. Aleks worked alongside his father while keeping a day job, managing for Castrol Lubricants, and then BP. He quit in 2014 to devote all his energies to the winery, and things have progressed spectacularly. He is assisted by his sons Jure and Jakob, and the two boys also have their own side project together, making small quantities of wine in the same cellar.
Unusually for the region, more red wine is made here than white. The majority is Merlot, the second most widely planted grape in Brda.
This region has a Mediterranean climate with an alpine influence, with a bit more rain than the east of the country, but most of it arriving in spring and autumn showers. The terrain is hilly, and soils are sedimentary. This used to be a seabed, and the soils deposited are now sandstone, clay and marl, varying with altitude and orientation. The tops of hills tend to have more marl and down the bottom there is more clay. Altitude ranges from 65-280 m and there are climatic impacts from the Adriatic sea 15 km away, and the alps.
The main white varieties are Rebula (Ribolla Gialla) which is around 25% of plantings, and then Sauvignonasse (Friulano) and Malvasia Istriana. International varieties are Charonnay, Pinot Gris, Pinot Blanc and Sauvignon Blanc. For reds, the main varieties are Merlot (the second-most planted variety in the region), Cabernet Franc, Cabernet Sauvignon and a bit of Refosco. Some producers, including Edi Simčič, are also planting Schiopettino (Black Rebula) which has almost died out.
They are looking to get more vibrancy in the whites, with less obvious oak.
THE WINES
Edi Simčič Rebula 2023 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This was a damp, rainy year. No Fojana made this year because of hail. This has freshness and directness with some pithy structure under taut citrus fruit, with some ripe pear, too. Lively with some complex herbal hints in the mix, with some juiciness. 93/100
Edi Simčič Rebula 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
A very dry, warm vintage. Complex and textural with some pithy citrus notes and then a touch of yellow plum fruit. Finely spiced with nice definition and detail. Lovely weight here. Finishes fresh and mineral. Tapering finish. 93/100
Edi Simčič Fojana Rebula 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Complexity here: some dried herbs, toast and spice. Very fresh and direct with a touch of pithiness. There’s a nice salty twist with nice length, showing some mineral detail and a direct acid line on the finish. 94/100
Edi Simčič Malvazija 2023 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Delicate and fresh with nice subtle bitter hints under the pear and white peach fruit, with a touch of grapiness. Nice freshness and detail to this wine, which has a supple personality with fine spicy hints and a touch of nice green. Finely wrought. 93/100
Edi Simčič Tokata 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
12.5% alcohol. This is Friulano. Textured and spicy with nice fleshy yellow fruits, and some green herby notes. Some melony richness, too, with fine spices and a hint of mint. This is lovely. 94/100
I can’t stop 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This is a side of Jure and Jakob’s, and they rent the vineyards. It’s a project wine based on Friulano (70%) but also Malvasija and Rebula, 5 days on the skins. Fresh and a bit minty with nice juicy yellow fruits and a touch of mandarin and grapefruit on the finish. There’s some good structure here under the fruit, and it all pulls together well. Juicy and a bit stony, with a lovely long finish. 95/100
Edi Simčič Triton Lex 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
13.5% alcohol. Rebula, Chardonnay and Sauvignon. Lively, bright and with good energy, showing some grainy detail and a touch of salinity, with pure pear and citrus fruit as well as some melony richness. Layered and really detailed, but showing some richness, too. 94/100
Edi Simčič Triton 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Tokaji, Rebula and Malvazija. Fresh with a nice green hint, with nice brightness and focus. This has nice vibrancy. Supple and fine with good balance: this is really good value. 93/100
Edi Simčič Chardonnay 2023 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This is very stylish with delicate white peach and pear fruit with subtle toast and spice. There’s freshness here with the oak playing a supporting role. Refined and classy with everything in its place, offering some richness but also a degree of restraint. 94/100
Edi Simčič Chardonnay 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14% alcohol. Fresh, powerful and mineral with some toastiness as well as pear and peach fruit, showing a hint of pineapple, too. Good structure and intensity. This has a lot of potential. 93/100
Edi Simčič Fojana Chardonnay 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Small fractured stones in the soils here. Textured, fleshy pear and pineapple fruit with some white peach and then a bit of spicy structure. Classy and refined with a supple fruity character and some fine herbal detail, with nice acidity. Tapering finish. Ripe but fine, with some delicacy. 94/100
Edi Simčič Kozana Chardonnay 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Blocks of stone and heavier soils. Fresh and linear with good acidity, heading off in a lean direction but with plenty of flavour. There’s some pineapple hints with a nice juiciness. Beautiful tapering finish here with a twist of bitterness on the finish. Stony. 94/100
Edi Simčič Sauvignon Blanc 2023 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
This is fresh and linear with lovely citrus and pear fruit as well as a touch of grapefruit and elderflower. Juicy and vivid with nice personality. 92/100
Edi Simčič Sauvignon Blanc 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Distinctive and supple with sweet pear and citrus fruit as well as some subtle green notes. Grapefruit richness and some fine spiciness, with nice layers of flavour. Great balance here. 93/100
Edi Simčič Fojana Sauvignon Blanc 2021 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14.5% alcohol. Lovely smoky, crystalline citrus fruit on the nose. Concentrated palate with crystalline citrus and some lovely acidity, as well as some fine spicy oak and then a long finish, with some warmth from the alcohol. This is really textured and spicy. 95/100
Edi Simčič Kozana Sauvignon Blanc 2021 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14.5% alcohol. Complex and layered with some subtle green leafy hints as well as rich citrus fruit, with some warmth on the finish. Crystalline palate with nice energy and detail. This is really fine with a brightness but also some depth, with fine green notes. 95/100
Edi Simčič Duet 2022 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14% alcohol. Younger vineyards and declassified grapes. Vinified the same way as all the red wines. 90% Merlot, with Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon. 18 months in a combination of used oak and tanks and foudres. This is really classy, with some Bordeaux red personality, combining approachability with plenty of personality. Ripe cherry and berry fruit with a touch of blackcurrant and then some warm spiciness. There’s a nice chalky, spicy detail. Nice tannins but they work well in the context of the ripe fruit. 92/100
Edi Simčič Duet Riserva 1999 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
13.5% alcohol. This is now Duet Lex. This was the second vintage of this. 80% Merlot, 10% Cabernet Franc, 10% Cabernet Sauvignon. Three years in small barrels with one racking. This is beautiful. It has lovely silky, sweet blackberry and black cherry fruit with some nice texture. Showing beautiful development here with some sleek black fruit but also a hint of truffle and spice, with very smooth tannins and a subtle note of green leafiness and black pepper. Ageing beautifully and drinking so well now, with some distance to go. 96/100
Edi Simčič Duet Lex 2005 Goriška Brda, Slovenia (magnum)
Three years in small oak. Lovely blackcurrant fruit with some black cherry, and then some fine spices. There’s just a little development here softening the substantial tannins a bit, and then a smooth core to the textured fruit. The finish has some nice tannins but they work so well in conjunction with the sweet, lush, textured fruit. Very stylish and beginning to drink, but with potential for future development. 96/100
Edi Simčič Duet Lex 2009 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
15% alcohol. Three and a half years (four winters) in one barrel. Very rich, warm and spicy with red cherries and strawberries and some plums. Sweet and rich, and drinking well now with some fine spicy notes under the dense sweet fruit. Some warmth on the finish. 91/100
Edi Simčič Duet Lex 2020 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14.5% alcohol. Three years in small oak then one in foudre. Ripe, rich and nicely dense, but with appealing freshness to the blackcurrant and blackberry fruit, with good structure. Sweet fruit dominates, but also there’s a core of good structure here. So fine with great detail under the bold fruit. So stylish. 94/100
Edi Simčič Kolos 2020 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14.5% alcohol. Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc. Three years in small barrels and then a winter in foudres. This is a selection from the five best vineyards. Powerful and structured with lovely black cherry and blackberry fruit, as well as some salty notes and a touch of tar and spice. There’s even some structured blackcurrant here. Grippy and intense, and quite unfurled, this has lots of potential for further development. 95/100
Edi Simčič Kozana Merlot 2018 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
14% alcohol. Four years in barriques then two years in barrels. Usually 5-7 barrels from this vineyard go into this bottling. This is a specific part of Kozana with the sedimentary soil with the limestone, and it’s also on the border of the heavy clay soils which help add balance to the wine. Brooding black cherry and blackberry fruit with some warm, spicy notes and well integrated oak. It’s rich and expansive, but there’s also spicy structure and detail here. Finishes slightly salty. This is so expressive and has potential for development with time. 95/100
Edi Simčič Kozana Merlot 2019 Goriška Brda, Slovenia
Concentrated and sweetly fruited with lovely ripe cherry and berry fruit, and some really well integrated tannins. Lovely concentration here, combining richness, freshness and structure. It’s powerful and finely spiced with real depth and fine spices. It runs the risk of being too ripe and polished, but it isn’t – there’s focus and structure here. Such a beautifully expressive example of Merlot. I don’t think there are many better. 96/100
