The Making
We can't talk about the making without talking about the makers, and about the place where they make it.
Our mission
To bring people joy, through high-quality wines born under the sun of Dobrogea.
Our vision
To redefine Dobrogean wine for a new generation, with contemporary energy and respect for the place.
2.100+
hours of sun a year, more than anywhere else in Romania
120 ha
of vineyard in production, plantings of different ages
2016
the year the winery opened its doors
The thought
Once upon a time in the future.
That is how the stories we believe in begin. And if you have never heard a story like this before, that is precisely the proof.
So we are not interested in saying what has already been said. We are not interested in showing what has already been shown, or doing what has already been done.
We are interested in being ourselves. The way we are, and the way nobody has been before.
We are interested in growing our own story and making our own wines, making room in our Dobrogea for plenty of rosé and a little more contemporary energy.
The experience
The sun gets on best with the sea, spending more than 2,100 hours a year in the Dobrogean sky, hours counted out for us day after day by the sundial in the courtyard, built precisely to celebrate them.
The sun is in the Crama Rasova logo too, because it is the essential ingredient in growing our vineyard, alongside the sandy soil and the breeze off the Danube. Together they make a setting found nowhere else, and every single grape enjoys it.
When the sun is away, we enjoy the mornings when fog settles over the landscape, and the cool nights with their cold air.
The varieties that feed on all of this are Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Pinot Gris, Fetească Albă, Muscat Ottonel, Tămâioasă Românească, Fetească Neagră, Pinot Noir, Cabernet Sauvignon and Syrah. We also vinify two varieties born in Dobrogea: Columna and Mamaia.
All of it ends up in a bottle of wine. Choose the one that feels like yours, pour the Dobrogean sun, the breeze, the mornings and the nights into a glass, and experience them through taste.
The place
The Crama Rasova vineyards lie within the Murfatlar appellation of origin.
What gives the wines here their distinct character is a singular combination of natural factors: the sun, the soil, the Danube, the air currents and the Black Sea, which together define the terroir of this wine region.
The sun
The longest period of sunshine in the country, more than 2,100 hours.
The soil
Alluvial sandy soil with limestone inserts. The wines have a heightened minerality, good acidity and a low pH.
The Danube
It moderates the temperature through spells of fog and through its currents. It reflects the light, adding both brightness and warmth.
The air currents
The Dobrogean wind corridor provides constant natural ventilation, which makes humidity in the vineyard far easier to control.
The Black Sea
Its influence is macroclimatic. On average there are 6 degrees Celsius between Constanța and Bucharest.
The winery
- Founded
- 2015
- Location
- Cernavodă, in the Murfatlar area
- Owners
- The Ghiuri family
- Investment
- A family business, 100% Romanian, more than 12 million euro, part of it European funding
- Winemakers
- Răzvan Macici, head winemaker, and Vlăduț Bolovan, winemaker
- Area
- Around 120 ha in production, plantings of different ages
- Capacity
- 1,071,000 litres
- Production
- Around 500,000 bottles
A unique concept
An innovative project, with enormous potential for wine tourism.
- Architectural project
- Igloo România
- Architect
- Bruno Andreșoiu
“A tribute to the Dobrogean landscape, rolling and often arid, stony, with sparse, hard-won vegetation.”
A building set perfectly inside its surroundings.
The space has two great functions: production, which takes in the whole winemaking process, and hospitality. The winery runs an open circuit, so you follow the grape's entire journey, from vine to bottle, without disturbing it.
Modern technology
The winery works by gravity, which lets the crushed grapes move without pumps and so keeps oxidation in the wines low.
Fitted with state-of-the-art winemaking technology, Crama Rasova has a capacity of roughly 1,000,000 litres.
Tanks of different sizes and capacities were all set at the same height, and each has temperature control.
It was built to give visitors an experience of its own, with a coffered ceiling and not a single supporting pillar.
The oak barrels come mainly from French producers. For some labels the winery's oenologists also use whole-berry vinification, fermenting and macerating in barrel, which extracts more aroma and gives a better balance between the wood and the fruit.
Sustainable farming
The viticultural practices follow sustainable farming, which means optimising natural substances and treatments so that biodiversity is never damaged.
Almost every operation that touches the vine itself, pruning, shoot thinning, desuckering and topping, is done by hand, and the selection of the grapes is extremely rigorous.
Quality control
In the vineyard
- Green or red harvesting on some varieties, up to 50% of the grapes, for aromatic concentration.
- The first sorting of the grapes happens at picking.
- Three further quality selections are made, at different moments.
- The work is done at micro-vinification level, parcel by parcel.
In the cellar
- The grapes are chilled to 6°C in a dedicated room.
- The next day comes a double selection, by bunch and by berry.
- Vinification is carried out at micro-vinification scale.
- The aim: maximum control of quality, and the expression of the terroir.
The Rasova collections
All the wines, in one place
Every range shows you its own world. Pick a bottle, or discover them all in the shop.
You've read the story. Now taste it.
Taste the making