Plavac Mali: Zinfandel's Croatian Cousin, Grown on Cliffs

Plavac Mali is pronounced PLAH-vats MAH-lee.

If you like Zinfandel, you already have a head start on Plavac Mali. DNA work in the late 1990s settled a long argument: Zinfandel and Croatia's Crljenak Kaštelanski (also called Tribidrag) are the same grape, and Plavac Mali is its child, crossed with an old island variety named Dobričić. So the wine you are about to meet is Zinfandel's offspring, raised on limestone cliffs above the Adriatic. It drinks bolder, darker, and often for less money.

What it tastes like

Expect weight. Plavac Mali is a full-bodied red built on dark cherry and dried fig, with carob, sage, and a snap of black pepper running underneath. The tannins are firm and the alcohol is high, often around 14 percent and climbing toward 15 or higher in the ripest coastal sites. In cooler vineyards it leans toward black cherry and herb. In the sun-hammered ones it turns to licorice, clove, and dried spice.

The Zinfandel resemblance is in the ripe fruit and the warmth. The difference is the frame: Plavac Mali carries more tannin and a more savory, slightly bitter edge than the plush California style. Pour it a little cool and give it air. It rewards a decanter and a plate of food.

The cliffs it comes from

Dalmatia is the long Croatian coastline that runs down the Adriatic, and Plavac Mali is its signature red. The best-known bottles come from two steep appellations on the Pelješac peninsula, Dingač and Postup, where vines cling to south-facing slopes that catch sun three ways: straight from the sky, reflected off the sea, and radiated back from the white rock. The islands of Hvar, Brač, and Vis grow it too.

For a long time the grape stayed a local story, partly because Yugoslav-era cooperatives chased volume over quality, and partly because Croatian names do not travel easily onto an American wine list. That has changed. The genetic link to Zinfandel gave the grape a passport, and a generation of small growers has taken the cliffs seriously. One caution worth knowing: Plavac Mali ripens unevenly, so a single cluster can hold both green and raisined berries. That makes it hard to farm well and explains why cheap examples can taste either thin or jammy. The good ones are worth finding.

What to eat with it

Plavac Mali is a big, warm-climate red, and it wants food with the same generosity. Point it at grilled and roasted lamb, pork, and beef, at Dalmatian pašticada and other slow-braised meats, at hard sheep's cheese, and at anything off a smoky grill. Its alcohol and tannin can overwhelm delicate plates, so skip the light dishes and lean into richness and char. Serve it a touch below room temperature to keep the heat in check.

Bottles to look for

A few producers surface again and again in reputable coverage. Grgić Vina is the Croatian winery of Miljenko "Mike" Grgich, the Napa vintner behind the Chardonnay that won the 1976 Judgment of Paris; he went home to found the estate, which makes Plavac Mali on Pelješac and is about the most searchable name in the category for a U.S. reader. Vinarija Miloš, also on Pelješac, is a family estate known for age-worthy, savory bottlings. Zlatan Otok on Hvar and Saints Hills are two more names that come up often.

The underdog case here is not charity. This is a grape with a documented parent that Americans already pay a premium for, grown on some of the most dramatic vineyard land in Europe, still priced like a discovery because the label is hard to pronounce. That gap is the opportunity. I will level with you on the limit of what I can offer today: I have not yet sat down with a range of these side by side, so you will not find a numbered score from me on this page. When I have worked through a few properly, I will add one. Until then, treat this as a map, not a verdict.

Beyond the winery's own shop

U.S. availability is real but uneven. Grgić Vina sells its Plavac Mali direct (the box at the top of this page), but only to some states. Beyond that, the grape shows up more often at specialist shops and Croatian-focused importers than on the average grocery shelf, so searching by name is your best first move.

— Chris Berry

If you're switching from a famous grape

If Zinfandel is your house red, this is the most direct swap in the underdog cabinet, because it is Zinfandel's actual offspring. You get the ripe dark fruit and the warmth, plus more tannin and a savory streak that stands up to grilled meat and hard cheese. Try one bottle against your usual Zin and judge the family resemblance yourself. More on the pattern in Wines Like Zinfandel and Order This Instead.

The white to pour beside it comes from the same Dalmatian coast: Pošip, the Croatian white that outgrows Chardonnay.

Part of Lesser-Known Wines: 17 Obscure Grapes Worth Switching To — the full underdog-swap guide.