Moldovan Wines

Gitana Winery - Moldova's Finest

NEVINI imports directly from Gitana Winery, one of the most prestigious and progressive wine houses in Moldova. Located in the southern region of Valul lui Traian, Gitana combines ancient winemaking traditions with modern technologies. The winery is known for its impeccable quality and has won numerous international awards.

Our Moldovan Wines

The Lupi Rezerva is a powerful, complex red wine that showcases the best of the Moldovan terroir. With careful barrel aging, this wine develops deep aromas and an impressive structure. The Saperavi is made from the indigenous grape of the same name from the Caucasus region, which has found a second home in Moldova. This wine offers intense dark fruit aromas, firm tannins and a long finish - a perfect introduction to the wine potential of Moldova.

The grapes of Moldova

Moldova grows international varieties alongside its own indigenous grapes. The best known is Saperavi, a variety that originated in the Caucasus and found its way to Moldova via Georgia. Saperavi is a so-called teinturier grape: not just the skin but the flesh and juice are red as well. The name literally means 'dye' or 'colour-giver' — which explains the deep, almost opaque colour, the firm structure and the fresh acidity that allow these wines to age so gracefully.

Moldova also has native pride of its own: Rara Neagră, an elegant, light-footed red grape with soft red fruit, and Fetească Neagră — 'the black maiden' — which yields dark, spicy wines. Its white counterpart, Fetească Albă, makes fresh, floral whites.

At NEVINI we deliberately chose wines built on Saperavi: the Gitana Saperavi, made from one hundred percent Saperavi, and the Lupi Rezerva, in which Saperavi lends depth and colour to a blend with Cabernet Sauvignon and Merlot.

The wine regions of Cahul and Valul lui Traian

Our Moldovan wines come from the deep south of the country: from the Cahul district, within the protected Valul lui Traian appellation. The region takes its name from the ancient earthen defence walls known as Trajan's Walls, which still run through the landscape. It is one of Moldova's three official IGP wine regions, alongside Codru and Ștefan Vodă.

It is also the warmest, sunniest wine region in the country. The continental climate is tempered by the relative proximity of the Black Sea; warm summers and cool nights let the grapes ripen slowly without losing their freshness. Add the fertile black earth and gently rolling hills, and it becomes clear why this corner of Moldova produces such ripe, powerful reds. Those are exactly the conditions you taste in Gitana's wines: ripe dark fruit, power and balance in equal measure.

The family story behind Gitana

Behind Gitana Winery stands the Dulgher family. In the years following Moldova's independence, the family set out to build a winery of its own in the south of the country — at a time when Moldovan winemaking had to reinvent itself. Today the estate is carried by the next generation of the family, and Gitana belongs to the group of houses proving that Moldova can be about far more than bulk wine.

The philosophy will feel familiar to anyone who loves family wineries: estate vineyards, limited volumes and patient barrel ageing rather than haste. You can taste it in the Lupi range — 'lupi' is Romanian for wolves — whose Lupi Rezerva is only released after long maturation in oak. As a small importer, that approach feels close to home: importing wine, like making it, is a matter of time, taste and conviction.