The country

Regions

Bulgaria is smaller than England and holds a Mediterranean valley, a continental river plain and a maritime coast. The distances are short; the differences are not.

The old heart

Thracian Valley

The broad plain south of the Balkan range, farmed for wine since Thracian times and still the country's most planted region.

Bulgaria's Mediterranean

Struma Valley

A narrow south-western corridor opening toward the Aegean, where sandstone pyramids shelter the vineyards of Melnik.

Cool and northern

Danube Plain

Rolling terraces above the river in the north, where the country's lightest, most perfumed reds are grown.

Salt and chalk

Black Sea Coast

A maritime strip of chalk and sand where whites keep their acidity and finish with a distinct salinity.

Fragrance as terroir

Rose Valley

Sheltered between two mountain ranges, the valley that supplies most of the world's rose oil also grows Bulgaria's most aromatic wines.

Altitude and acidity

Balkan Foothills

The southern slopes of the Stara Planina, the historic home of Red Misket and of Bulgaria's most nervy whites.