“ČOKA” WINERY – Čoka

The vine has been closely associated with the Čoka region for almost two millennia, but the foundations of industrial viticulture were laid by the landowner Artur Lederer at the turn of the 20th century. The enterprising Lederer also began construction of a wine cellar below the level of the Tisa River, which today ranks among the largest underground wine cellars in the Balkans. In the legendary wine vat with a capacity of 67,000 litres, card games accompanied by Romani musicians would go on for days. After the Second World War, the wine complex passed into state ownership, and the Čoka Winery was established. Today, on the banks of the Tisa, vines flourish across approximately 203 hectares, producing Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Italian Riesling, Rhine Riesling, Chardonnay, Muscat Ottonel, Blaufränkisch and Sauvignon Blanc. In 1969, the winery launched Ždrepčeva krv, a wine that quickly made its mark both across the former Yugoslavia and in Europe’s traditionally strong wine markets. The wine’s quality is reflected in the fact that, during the 1980s, as many as 50 railway wagons of Ždrepčeva krv left the winery every month, bringing pleasure to wine lovers around the world. Merlot, Ružica and Muscat Ottonel also achieved good sales, as did a range of spirits.

Construction of the cellar began in 1903 and was completed in 1912, with a capacity of 2,000 railway wagons. This original and unique structure is regarded as one of the finest wine cellars in the former Yugoslavia. The cellar is entered through an enormous doorway, in front of which stands a wooden post once used to lower and raise wine barrels. Descending the long staircase into the wine cellar, visitors come across the initials of the former owner, A.L., and the inscription IN VINO VERITAS. Then comes a surprise: a spacious cellar opens up before us, filled with enormous wooden vats. Along its seven so-called ‘streets of wine’, the cellar’s spacious passageways, approximately 130 oak barrels, ranging in capacity from 1,500 to 11,000 litres, stand in rows ten metres below ground. Many of them are a full century old. The cellar was built one kilometre from a former channel of the Tisa that had fallen out of use, while the river’s present course lies only about four kilometres away. This is a cellar steeped in tradition — a ‘wine town’ of little streets and barrels. The largest vat has an extraordinary story of its own. Spacious enough to resemble a small hall, it was once used for gatherings of the local gentry. Over glasses of the finest Čoka wine, with cards on the table, business discussions would also take place. It is fair to say that many a destiny in this part of the Tisa region was decided in the glass-enclosed chamber holding 67,000 litres. The best-known passageway is Merlot Street, while among the barrels, the so-called Sima’s Barrel is particularly famous, as it is always filled with the finest wine.