Once upon a time, a local wine producer from Vrbnik was looking out of the window of his house perched on the top of a cliff. He looked at the sea, then down at the golden wine in his glass, then back at the sea. The two things he loved the most were right there in front of his ideas. They just needed to marry to produce a child that will make him famous.
As you may guess, he thought of the technique of deposit the wine bottles at the bottom of the sea to produce a sea sparkling wine. The bottles were left under the sea for several months as a trial. At the end of the summer, to celebrate this unique occasion, all the locals eagerly got together to pull out the bottles from the sea and taste the wine. But not a single bottle was found at the bottom of the sea where they had been left months ago! You can imagine their surprise at discovering that Vrbnik being a great diving destination with a rich underwater life, the divers have helped themselves to some free souvenirs of the Krk underwater life!
This story may be part of the local folklore, but the wine Valomet is not part of our imagination. You can hear all about it during one of the wine tasting tours of Vrbnik.
What Kind of Wine is Valomet?
Vrbnik Agricultural Cooperative is the one to thank for the amazing idea of pouring an exquisite sparkling wine fermented at the bottom of the sea into champagne glasses after it has been fished out from the sea! Or, to be more exact- dived out!
At a depth of 30 metres and a temperature of 12 degrees, the bottles of famous Žlahtina wine are placed in steel grid cases where they age for months to become the perfect sea sparkling wine called Valomet.
The name Valomet literally means cliff which breaks the waves – underneath the very same steep cliff of Vrbnik- unquestionably one of the most amazing natural attractions on the Island of Krk!
Since this autochthonous Vrbnička Žlahtina is already sweet enough, as a contrast to other sparkling wines where a liqueur is added to one of the grape varieties, no liqueur is ever added to Valomet which thus has no sugar and is a perfect, dry sea sparkling wine with fruity aromas and an almost salty taste.
The way Valomet is produced is not its only unique feature. It also has an uncommonly beautiful design. At the bottom of the dark and peaceful Island of Krk sea, the nature is decorating Valomet bottles with unique patterns of corals and clams. The bottles become simply too stunning not to be left in their sea fabricated “suit”. Nature always comes up with the most gorgeous designs- wouldn’t you agree? 🙂
Where to Try Valomet Sparkling Wine?
If you want to try this divine sea sparkling wine, come to the Vrbnik Agricultural Cooperative at the entrance to the town of Vrbnik, beneath the local bus station, in the port of Vrbnik. It is the only place in the world where you can enjoy the Valomet sparkling wine. Cheers!
