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BTA will present dozens of Bulgarian wineries in the New BG WINE Leads the Way series ahead of the 9th UN Global Conference on Wine Tourism, which will be hosted in Plovdiv. The forum is organized by the Ministry of Tourism in partnership with the UN World Tourism Organization.

Wine from the Sveti Vrach winery is distributed globally, owner Valentin Atanasov said on Sunday.

The winery, located in Sandanski, has operated privately since 1994 and its history traces back to a local wine cellar from the 1950s.

The winery creates and maintains its own vineyards, planted with Muscat, Syrah, Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Melnik 55, Rouen and Melnik Rubin grape varieties.

Its cellar, home to fermentation vessels and wine-aging barrels, is dug into the ground. Every autumn, alongside grapes from its own vineyards, experts select and purchase grapes from the Melnik-Sandanski terroir. The winery has a total vessel capacity of 850,000 litres and is equipped with state-of-the-art technology from leading Bulgarian and international firms, including 12 fermentation tanks.

Atanasov added that the winery produces both white and red wines, with local traditional varieties particularly popular. This summer, new equipment was introduced under a European programme. The output is sold both in Bulgaria and internationally, he said, with previous exports even reaching China. Among Sveti Vrach’s most prestigious awards is second place for its Syrah red wine, vintage 2022.