Jidvei
That the age some retire, others reinvent themselves. They become what the world needs, take everything they have received and give back to the world, sometimes even more than could be measured.
Quietly, and without informing anyone, the people from Jidvei had "corporate social responsibility" campaigns long before this expression haunted the meeting rooms of Romanian corporations. Schools, kindergartens and, above all, the people in the area, know best. From an oversized state farm and a vineyard made to produce volumes, reinvesting a large part of the profits, step by step, with replanting, with updated technology, attracting young people in decision-making positions and with a new generation of oenologists, the new Jidvei family ended up winning the great gold medals of some of the most important wine competitions in the world.
The reconstruction and reinvention of Jidvei started with the privatization of the former state farm, in 1999. The first steps towards recognition are the distillates launched in 2002, then the Tezaur blends, in 2003 and, finally, the statement of intent signed in 2010, with the launch of the Nec Plus Ultra range. In the meantime, the hectares of vineyards replanted on the site of the former "volume" vineyards had come to maturity, and the wines that were going to win the recognition of experts from all over the world were becoming a plausible project.
In 2011, the first Eiswein appeared, a precious dessert wine, from grapes picked after many consecutive nights of frost, crafted with the same attention and passion as any top wine of a small winery.
Somehow understandable, given that Jidvei remains, despite the large area to be managed, a family business. 2012, however, came with two promises – Mysterium and Owner’s Choice – two ranges that, a decade after their launch, demonstrate not only a clear growth from one year to the next, but also flexibility, adaptability and attention to market requirements. Things that, along with the promise of producing the best wine that the harvest conditions allow, have brought Jidvei back to the same level of recognition it had gained four or five hundred years ago, when Transylvania was called Weinland – Wine Country.
„The quality of Jidvei wines is one of the most important values that has guided us since 1999 and that has helped us carry on a tradition started in 1949, through constant and consistent investments. The idea with which we started was for Jidvei to become an integrated company, from the bottle to the wine bottle. At the moment, we are the largest producer in Romania that produces wine using only grapes from its own vineyards, and the plantations are established with vine planting material from its own Viticulture School, the first private school in the country.
This very brave decision was motivated by the desire to create wines that reflect as truthfully as possible the specifics of the local terroir, now D.O.C. Jidvei. We wanted wine lovers to really feel the typical taste of the wines from the heart of Transylvania – a sample of authenticity and uniqueness -, something impossible to achieve if we had used grapes from other wineries as well", says Maria Necsulescu, Assistant General Manager Jidvei.
The vineyards located in the delimited area of D.O.C. Jidvei are located in the Tarnave valley, between 250 and 500 meters above sea level, on slopes with a south-western exposure. The rivers Tarnava Mica and Tarnava Mare create a specific microclimate, and the considerable temperature differences between night and day, solar exposure and late autumn mists help the grapes gain in aromatic complexity, while maintaining the high acidity specific to the area.
“D.O.C. Jidvei does not only mean typical environmental characteristics, but also respect to some legislation rigors that refer to the density and purity of the varieties, the control of the production per hectare depending on the grape varieties and the wines to be obtained, the quality of the harvest and the wines obtained. Also, oenological practices and wine production technologies, treatments and production characteristics are regulated. Certain legislative regulations must be followed regarding the analytical and organoleptic characteristics of the wines, but also for the presentation and labeling of the products ", say the company representatives.
The largest producer of Feteasca Regala in the world
„Jidvei stood out as the largest producer of white wines in Romania, but recent climate changes also allow us to produce rosé and red wines with a light-velvety body, fresh and defined by delightful aromas. Next, from the total area of 2,500 hectares, the largest part of the plantations – 15 varieties – is represented by white grape varieties. Over 1,000 hectares are planted with Feteasca Regala and Sauvignon Blanc – 738 hectares and 342 hectares, respectively. We are even the largest producer of Feteasca Regala in the world and we own one of the largest areas under Sauvignon Blanc cultivated in a single vineyard in Europe.
The family business concept is reflected in everything we do, in the way we relate to consumers, in the way we interact with partners, employees and the community. We don’t talk about Jidvei as a business, but as a big family, and through everything we have built and will build, we want to contribute to a better future for the next generations", adds Maria Necsulescu, Assistant General Manager of Jidvei.
But the viticultural potential of the area has been expressed in outstanding wines since ancient times, this area being called the Wine Country or Weinland, in the feudal era. Thus, local varieties, as well as international ones, have found favorable conditions for development, succeeding in transmitting the specificity of the Jidvei Vineyard. The representative varieties in the company’s portfolio are Feteasca Regala, a variety identified for the first time at the beginning of the 20th century right near Jidvei, and Sauvignon Blanc, which is a revelation because of the way it has adapted to the region and developed extraordinary typical taste and and aromas .
