Milan Nestarec - Bĕl - 1 liter - 2022 - 11,5% - regio Moravia

For that moment when magnum feels a tad too decadent but a regular 750 just won't do

Běl used to have the same label as my White Label range, which actually didn't make much sense as its character and winemaking are quite different. So we came up with this brand new packaging, whose "rustic finesse" conveys better the message in the bottle. To make it really "us", the label is now a linocut made by my dear wife Mirka, and we found a cute plump bottle whose shape and crown cap transport me right to my childhood when we used to buy beer or juice in such containers. We kept the liter volume, of course, as it's an important part of Moravian wine heritage. Or you can call it “minimagnum”, like my Montréal friends.

My unassuming Moravian roots, this time with a more important
part of Gruner, a grape I focus on more and more as I find it both
super interesting and greatly adapted to Bilovice conditions. Wine
that you can drink with literally everyone, be they natural wine fans
or haters. (I sometimes joke that I make this wine so that I have
something to drink with my Bílovice neighbours.) Made with “common” local grapes that always used to be blended together for an everyday wine, drunk in masses by the masses. An approach I like– and Běl and its 1-litre plump juice-like bottle is my tribute to that.
Linocut label by my wife Mirka to emphasise this rustic, casual
hand-made vibe.

2022 was a very dry and hot year, with only 421 mm
of rainfall (= about 100 mm less than average) and 32+
days with temperatures exceeding 30 °C between June
and August. While the younger vineyards visibly suffered, the older vineyards coped very well, and we did our best to adapt the vineyard management, in order to keep as much shade and water as possible. The temperatures dropped radically at the end of August and the ripening became very slow, thanks also to the nearly–
constant September rain. Fortunately, warmer weather returned in October and saved the vintage’s reputation, especially for late varieties such as my beloved Gruner Veltliner and Blaufrankisch. Fermentations in general were slower than usual (not just in our region but more or less in the whole of Central Europe, afaik),
but in the end, the wines are tasty, aromatic and accessible, with lower acidity and lower ABV, ready to be drunk quickly

Grape varieties Gruner Veltliner, Welschriesling,
Muller Thurgau
Region Moravia
Subregion Velkopavlovická
Village Velké Bílovice & Moravský Žižkov
Vineyard Blend of different plots
Aspect South-west and south-east
Average altitude 205–260 m ASL
Slope 5–15%
Soil Loess
Farming Organic (certified by ABCERT)
Age of vines 4–21 years old
Vineyard size 4 ha
Training system Guyot
Density of plantation 2.2 x 1.0 m and 2.0 x 0.9 m
Yield 60 hl/ha
Harvest By hand, September 19–24, 2022
Vinification Sorted by hand, destemmed, not crushed
Pressing Directly pressed on pneumatic press, ~12 hours
Fermentation Spontaneous, ~45 days
Ageing Stainless steel + Wood
Fining No
Filtration No
Sulfur addition 8 ppm before bottling
Bottling April 2023
Lot number Bel22
Alcohol by volume 11.5 %
Acids 5.8 g/l
Residual sugar 2.0 g/l
Bottle 1.0 l Vetropack Bordeaux 447
Closure Crown cap
Serving temperature 11–12 °C