“This year we are very proud to have 12 wineries here at the Slow Wine Fair, and that was possible thanks to the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Water Economy from North Macedonia”, explains Nikolce Nikolovski from Slow Food North Macedonia. “Back home, the network of wine producers is getting stronger thanks to this feeling of belonging to Slow Food. We try to involve them in our events such as the Slow Wine Salon and in the local edition of the Slow Wine Guide. We also have a lot of projects for the future, such as some education activities and make sure both the Slow Wine Salon and the Slow Wine Guide are fundamental pillars of our work with wineries in North Macedonia.”
“If we compare the situation today to 20 years ago when my winery first opened, the situation has really improved. For local wineries it is now much easier to produce and sell wine. Finally the law has also been improved, opening the door to small-scale wineries”, explains Sashko Andov, a young wine producer from North Macedonia. “Fortunately the wine culture is also much improved: in the past consumers were used to industrial wine, but nowadays curiosity around artisanal wine is growing. In the past, the wine produced by small-scale local wineries used to be called “family wine”, which was synonymous with low quality. The reality is that many producers produce local family wine but of high quality, as they pay attention to every step of the production.”
“My father has always produced wine for the family and in 2004 he registered the Eros Winery and started selling it, too. We passed through tough times, as we were pioneers in the beginning, but now we hope we have a brighter future ahead. In recent years, thanks to the changes in the law, consumers have started to look for family wines, and the relations among producers have been strengthened; we’re also competitors, of course, but in a positive way. The Slow Wine event we organize in North Macedonia and international events such as Slow Wine Fair are the perfect place to meet new customers, as people who come to these events are open minded and curious to find new products,” concluded Sashko.