We almost missed it!  We were pacing up and down Ljubljana’s Črtomirova street desperately looking for a good place to have dinner when from the bottom of a narrow staircase came Primoz.  Noticing that we were tourists out and about, he warmly invited us in.  “Would you like to try some great Slovenian wine?”, he said.  My wife and I smiled back and almost hesitantly declined because, although we take pleasure on a good bottle of wine, we were more hungry than thirsty.

But there was something particular and curious about this place.  So, we promised Primoz we would be back the very next day to see what his Vinotek had to offer; and kept our promise we did.

The very next day, before making our way to Spajza for dinner, we made our way to Vino a ‘la Carte.  Right away Primoz catered to us, and was very welcoming and friendly.  Not only did he give us two excellent wines to sample, but he also played some great tracks from his 80’s music collection – at this point we were totally hooked.

It was the perfect ambiance.  Primoz is not only passionate about Slovenian wine but is extremely knowledgeable.  He personally selects his grapes from a handful of Slovene vineyards and his selection is outstanding.

We went home with two bottles of quality Slovenian wines, one white (which we haven’t tried) and a red Merlot labeled Metaldays, in honor of Slovenia’s heavy metal music festival which has been celebrated since 2004 in Tomlin, a small town in northwestern Slovenia.

The Merlot was exquisite.  A medium-body wine with subtle flavors of plum, black cherry, and tobacco.  Perfect for pairing with grilled meats, or pastas.

Our two-day stay in Ljubljana was one of the highlights of my backpacking trip, and Primoz and his vinotek, Vino a ‘la Carte, played a huge role in that.  With this post I would like to thank Primoz for his friendliness, for being a great host, and for introducing us to Slovenian wines.  And, if you visit Ljubljana and have a palette for quality wine, this is a place you do not want to miss.