Phylloxera

A couple of vultures (skares in the local dialect) glide low overhead, accompanied by the eerie howl of a fierce wind, greeting me with an unsettling welcome as I arrive in Temenia in the White Mountains. The vine leaves of the ancient, pre-phylloxera vineyard shimmer in vibrant green, clinging to the first delicate shoots that sway restlessly in the breeze.

One of Slovenia's premier wine-growing regions, the Vipava Valley has a vine grafting tradition going back almost 120 years. Today, their grafted vines are sold world-wide, the lion's share to France, the world's leading wine-producing country.