Milan Nestarec - Vesper - 2022 - 13% - Stará hora Field Blend - regio Moravia

VESPER 2022 

I’m the money. 

“Teach us to care and not to care.” 

A verse from T.S. Eliot’s 1930 poem Ash Wednesday, and a fitting motto for our 2022 vintage. The year I became even more aware that winemaking means focusing all your energy on what you can influence, and letting go of what you can’t. This approach allows us to create wines that are precise and solid, yet unforced and genuine — a seeming contradiction that defines these 2022s. 

Abundant sunshine throughout the growing season ranks this vintage among the very warm and dry ones. A very mild winter was followed by an early spring with rapid growth. May and June saw no dramatic fluctuations which allowed for even flowering and grape-set. However, summer brought a long period of tropical temperatures and little rainfall, resulting in smaller berries, higher concentration, and firm structure. Despite the drought, the vines adapted well, especially in our older vineyards and on sites where we’ve been farming with a “hands-off” approach (no tillage, no shoot-thinning) tailored individually to each vine — i.e., our White Labels plots, the oldest and most idiosyncratic of our vineyards. 

Thunderstorms and light rains in August helped stabilize ripening, and the harvest began very early. Careful timing of the pick was crucial to keep the grapes at their maximum potential — a challenge I feel we met. As a result, our 2022 wines are very well structured, full-bodied, and lively, with very good ageing potential. 

In the past, people often donated their land to the church at the end of their lives, trying to “buy” their place in heaven — which is exactly how this particular vineyard in Žižkov once belonged to the local parish. I’m always a sucker for vineyard histories, so when the plot became ours, we wanted a name that reflects its story, all while symbolising the wine’s confident femininity. Because this beautiful oldvine Veltliner is elegant, sharp, and complex, disarmingly charming yet guarding her secrets. 

Enter Vesper: the magic (prayer) time between light and dark, when people gather to express their gratitude for the day, and also the only true love of Mr. Bond, a heroine with unique poise and depth. 

What made this site just as irresistible? Windy with welldrained sandy subsoil, it exposes the vines to positive stress. Planted with a very diverse, old selection of Veltlín clones, it yields both small-berried, quick-ripening grapes and those with a ‘greener’ character and good acidity. An optimal mix for a wine that is ethereal and linear at the same time. Does she have the licence to kill? Maybe not, but I wouldn’t mess with her anyway… 

Grape varieties: Gruner Veltliner 
Region: Moravia 
Subregion: Velkopavlovická 
Village: Moravský Žižkov 
Vineyard: Stará hora 
Soil: Sand 
Average altitude: 208 m AS
Aspect: South-west
Slope: 4% Farming: Organic (certified by ABCERT — CZ-BIO-002) 
Age of vines: 45 years 
Vineyard size: 1.3 ha 
Training system: Guyot 
Density of plantation: 2.20 × 1.0 m 
Harvest: By hand. September 16, 2022. 
Yield: 27 hl/ha 
Vinification: Whole bunches pressed directly to barrel. 
Fermented on full lees (no debourbage) for 5 weeks 
Pressing: Slow pneumatic press (20+ hours) at 0.2 bar 
Fermentation: Native yeast fermentation with pied-de-cuve 
Ageing: Stockinger oak foudre, 3000 litres 
Fining: No 
Filtration: No 
Sulfur addition: 6 ppm before bottling 
Bottling: November 2025 
Lot number: VES22 
Bottle: 0.75, L. Vetropack Burgundy 
Alcohol by volume: 13.00% 
Closure: Ardeaseal Organic 
Acids: 6.5 g/l 
Serving temperature: 11—12 °C 
Residual sugar: 0.1 g/l 
Serving glass: Zalto Burgundy, Květná Pinot Noir/Nebbiolo Auriga 
First vintage: 2022 
Designation: Moravské zemské víno (IGP equivalent) 
Recycling info: www.nestarec.cz/sorting-info