Šipčanik, where the planes made way for vranac

Some wineries you visit for the wine and some for the place, and Šipčanik belongs firmly in the second group, though the wine holds its own. Beneath the Ćemovsko Polje vineyards, a few kilometres from Podgorica, the military dug an underground hangar for its aircraft. Where the planes used to stand there are now rows of barrels, and for me that change of use is the best story in Montenegrin wine.

From hangar to cellar

13. Jul Plantaže explains on its website that the site has changed roles several times, from Ottoman fortification to military airfield and finally to wine cellar. In the 1990s the company’s management decided to turn it into a place where wine would age better, and since November 2007 oak barrels have stood where aircraft once did.

The numbers are striking. It’s a winding tunnel 356 metres long, about 13.5 metres wide and 7 high, roughly 7,000 m², more than 30 metres down in the middle of the vineyard. The temperature holds between 17 and 19 °C all year round and humidity sits around 80%. At any one time more than 2 million litres of wine are ageing there, and the archive holds over 18,000 bottles from different vintages.

The vineyard overhead

What lies above the cellar is almost as remarkable as what’s inside. The Tourist Organisation of Podgorica describes the Plantaže vineyard as one of the largest in Europe, about 2,300 hectares with around 11.5 million vines and 29 varieties, with vranac covering almost two thirds. The company itself speaks of more than 2,000 hectares in a single complex and over 60% vranac. The figures don’t match exactly, so I’d rather give you both than pick one.

The vineyard is bounded by the Cijevna river, which cuts a small canyon through ancient rock before it finds the Morača. It’s the same river as the waterfalls in Tuzi.

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What the visit involves

Visits run every day from 09:00 to 17:00 and must be booked at least a day ahead. They last one to two hours depending on the programme and are usually in English. Plantaže’s site describes three sommelier-led tastings, one with three wines from native grapes, krstač, kratošija and vranac, and bruschetta; another with four wines and a cheese board; and a third with four wines and a meat or fish platter. Prices aren’t on the website, so I’m not quoting any.

A few rules are worth knowing. Tasting is for over-18s only, children must be accompanied, you can’t bring your own food or drink, you can pay by cash or card, and once a booking is paid it isn’t refundable; cancellations need 48 hours’ notice. For groups of 15 or more there’s a tourist train through the vineyard at €5 per person, lasting about 25 minutes.

Getting there, and lunch afterwards

Plantaže gives the address as Tuzi bb, Karabuško Polje, and is clear that visitors arrange their own transport, by car, taxi or organised tour. If you’re tasting, a taxi from Podgorica is the sensible option. I’d pair it with a Montenegrin lunch in the capital, rounded up in my guide to Podgorica restaurants, and for the rest of the country’s wineries, see Montenegro wine.

If you are short on time, see the best tours in Šipčanik and pick one that fits your day.

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