Tasting

A tasting in Ștefan Vodă is best started light and finished dark, otherwise the more delicate wines won't register at all. First into the glass comes Rara Neagră, barely darker than a bold rosé. Its aroma recalls red cherry, dried herbs and a hint of earth. In the mouth, the acidity stands out immediately, sharp and lively, while the body stays fairly light.

Next, if an estate offers it, comes Fetească Neagră. It's darker in color, warmer in aroma, with notes of prune and a hint of tobacco. Its tannins, that drying grip on the tongue, are rounder than those of Rara Neagră. Anyone tasting both in succession immediately understands why Moldova treats them as two separate personalities rather than as variations of the same variety.

The finale is almost always Negru de Purcari. Deep ruby red, an aroma of black cherry, cassis and toasted oak, and in the mouth a wall of tannin that only lets up after minutes. It was exactly this structure that convinced the jury at the 1878 World's Fair in Paris. To this day it convinces wine connoisseurs tasting it for the first time.

Rara Neagră is served lightly chilled, around fourteen, fifteen degrees. Otherwise the acidity comes across as shrill. Negru de Purcari handles room temperature well. An hour of air in a carafe does it more good than any chilling. Between glasses, a piece of bread or unsalted nuts helps reset the palate, but never water, since that only washes the flavors away, as every winemaker along the Nistru agrees.