Wines That Mature in a 16th Century Cellar: Our Story in the Local Press
In the 16th century, the Zrinski family — the most powerful noble house of this region, remembered by every Croatian schoolchild for the Siege of Szigetvár — made wine in the hills of Upper Međimurje.
Five hundred years later, we make wine in the very same place. We are not of noble blood like the Zrinski — our organic wines are the result of the blood and sweat we pour into the vineyard, while in the Zrinski cellar we patiently tend the wines as they mature in wooden barrels.
This week, the local news portal medjimurski.hr told that story to its readers: Kušajte vina obitelji Lovrec koja dozrijevaju u povijesnom podrumu Zrinskih! — “Taste the Lovrec family wines that mature in the historic Zrinski cellar.” We gladly share it with you, and add a few details of our own.
What is the Zrinski cellar?
Our cellar in Sveti Urban is the oldest preserved wine cellar in Upper Međimurje. It dates from the 16th century, when it belonged to the noble Zrinski family. They owned eight cellars in this area, but only one has survived in part — the one recorded in the archives as “Pri zidu” (“By the wall”), the cellar beneath the plane trees, today owned by our family.
The oldest barrel still in use dates from 1822
Our natural air-conditioning: 300-year-old plane trees, runner-up for Croatian Tree of the Year
All of our wines mature there in oak barrels, the oldest of which has been in use since 1822. In summer, the cellar is cooled naturally by two plane trees roughly 300 years old that shade the courtyard above.
The plane trees and the thick walls of the old cellar are a perfect natural air-conditioning system — one that outperforms modern cooling equipment.
Six generations, organic since 2015
The article opens with the numbers: six generations of winemaking in our family. Our farm has operated officially since Croatian independence, but the family’s work in the vineyard and cellar goes back much further.
In 2015 we switched to full certified organic production. We can proudly say that Vino Lovrec was the first certified organic winery in Međimurje, and every wine we make is produced without added sugar, pesticides or synthetic chemicals — across six hectares and about 40,000 vines, led by Krešimir, our winegrower and winemaker.
Krešimir Lovrec in the cellar where all our wines mature
“Despite increasingly demanding years, we continue our ecological mission with respect for nature at its centre,” as the article puts it. Last year rewarded that patience. The harvest brought exceptionally healthy grapes, and thanks to a cooler autumn that reminded us of the seasons before today’s climate extremes, we took a risk and left part of the Graševina crop on the vines longer. Healthy, beautiful grapes and a fresh autumn favoured the development of noble rot — botrytis — on the berries, and after years of waiting we were once again able to produce a selected berry harvest (izborna berba bobica), this time from Graševina. That same wine won a Gold Medal this year at the Pomurski sejem wine competition in Gornja Radgona, Slovenia — “Vino Slovenija Gornja Radgona BIO 2026.”
Graševina selected berry harvest — Gold at Vino Slovenija Gornja Radgona BIO 2026
Which wines mature in the cellar today?
Our current range includes: Sauvignon, Pinot Gris and Pinot Gris Rosé; two dessert wines — a late harvest Yellow Muscat and the selected berry harvest Graševina; the reds Viteško Crno and Merlot; and two traditional-method sparkling wines, Vivace Brut and the sweeter Libiamo Sec Rosé. From our younger archive: an ice wine from Traminer Mirisavi, a regular-harvest Rhine Riesling and a selected harvest Traminer Mirisavi.
Come taste our wines at the source
Reading about a 500-year-old cellar is one thing. Standing in it with a glass of Pinot Gris is another. We host tastings by appointment from May 20 to November 15, for individual guests and small groups up to 20, in Croatian, English, French or German — and your dog is welcome too.
Write to us at info@vino-lovrec.hr, and find our wines year-round at Vinoteka Vino Lovrec in Varaždin or with us in Sveti Urban.