Ghira - Damir Mihelić

The Ghira vineyards are located in Novigrad, Joakima Rakovca 4, in Istria - Croatia, with an area of 3.1 hectares, with 16,000 vines that are treated organically.

The soil is cultivated by hand and with machines for surface cultivation and in the vineyards surrounded by forest and native grasses, lacy phacelia is sown, which balances the soil and is an excellent pasture for bees. Harvesting is done by hand, in different months. Maceration is carried out in the wine cellar, sulphite intake is reduced, the wine is not filtered and its own yeast culture is grown using the Pied de Cuvée method. Since 2021, the wines of the Ghira winery have an ecological certificate, although the ecological approach was nurtured already ten years ago. Malvasia, white Istrian Muscat and Teran grow in the vineyards and in addition to vines, cherries, bees, olives and various grasses for bee grazing and horse nutrition are grown on the estate. It is the bees that play an important role in the biological diversity, but also in the ecological production of the Ghira winery, because not far from the vineyards, the owner of the winery, Damir Mihelić, has set up twenty beehives. In addition to using this honey for commercial purposes, Mihelić from the work of bees, in cooperation with the neighbouring family farm, also uses beeswax to seal the bottles in which Madura wine is filled. Also, at different locations of the estate, all vegetation mass created by pruning is composted. Four years ago, a biodynamic practice was introduced, through which preparations 500, 501 and 506 are used in smaller percentages for compost, and all work in the cellar is carried out according to the biodynamic calendar.