Trip through time with Constantine's wine from amphora - Wine Village in Malca near Nis to open by end-summer, hotel and amphitheater in the pipeline

For over a decade the owner of Svrljig-based Status winery and Malca wine cellar near Nis has been working hard to perfect the wines made in Nis. A novelty they have just announced is organic wine to be served to tourists in the future Wine Village in Malca!

In a picturesque nature, down by the river, only few kilometers away from the city center, first tourists will be taken on a “wine trip through time” as early as late August, Bora Jovic says to eKapija.

With the help of the State Secretariat for Tourism of the Finance Ministry, the former winery in Malca, bought six years ago, has been completely reconstructed with four facilities within that complex turned into “wine houses.”

(wine cellar in Malca)

- We expect the first phase of construction of Wine Village – four houses, two lecture halls and a wine tasting room, to be completed in four to five weeks – Jovic reveals to us.

The oldest among them is “Roman House,” where wines will be made using the same technology as in the time of Emperor Constantine – it will be kept in amphorae and served in clay pots. Those clinging to the tradition from the time of the Nemanjics will be pleased with "House of the Nemanjics," where wooden pots will be used to make “divine nectar.”

Wine Village will also accommodate “Serbian House” from mid-20th century, the period when agricultural cooperatives were at their peak, featuring concrete tanks as well as a modern wine house with all the characteristic elements of modern wine making. The entire complex, which is only few kilometers away from Nis, covers an area of about 2.5 hectares.

A blend of tourism and wine is an old love of Bora Jovic’s, who exchanged his career of mechanical engineer for winemaking and viticulture, which he enjoys. As he says, his idea is to, at least partially, bring back the old glory to Nis-based vineyards, since over the last few decades they have only been a shadow of what they once were.

- The Nis area has a beautiful and old wine tradition. The wine cellar in Malca used to make two million liters of wine, while those in Matejevac and Sicevo were producing up to 10 times more wine – says Jovic.

The second phase will see the construction of a “wine hotel” in Wine Village in Malca with a capacity of about 60 people, our interlocutor reveals. The whole complex will significantly improve what Nis already offers to tourists as well as contribute to its tourism promotion.

Malca is situated close to a highway from Nis to the Bulgarian border, which is why the plan is to set up a large signpost pointing to the new winemaking oasis that has no precedent in this part of Serbia.

The story does not end here as people in Malca also intend to host various cultural events. For this reason they have started building an outdoor amphitheater with a seating capacity of about 350 people. “Roman Forum,” as they call it, will be completed by November.

M.S.

(Photo: Facebook)