KAVARNA - ZIA (ZIA means “LIGHT”)
Located in the Northeastern part of Bulgaria, just 10 km from the Black Sea coast, this is our very first plot planted with vineyards on a flat terrain 130m above sea level.
The climate is dominated by the constant breezes from the Black Sea which helps keeping the sugar levels and acidity in the grapes in ballance.
The soil is very rich and most of the work in the vineyards is directed towards avoiding excessively large yields which would lead to watered down produce. It is mostly done by hand, which allows consistent control of the quality of the grapes.
The philosophy of AYA Estate Vineyards is to follow entirely organic and biodynamic principles – both in the vineyards and during the vinification process.
Here we cultivate our Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Petit Manseng and Pinot Noir under the strict supervision of the very skilled agronomist Ivan Ivanov. Thanks to his and his team's remarkable work we have fantastic grapes for the production of our Colorito white and red wines as well as the wonderful dessert wine from Petit Manseng - Disegno.
In the spirit of our desire to revive the glory of the Bulgarian varieties, we planted additional Dimyat and Pamid and we can't wait for them to come into fruition so that we can show you their manifestation in a bottle.
HARSOVO, Melnik region -
AYA (AYA means “DESIGN”, “BEAUTIFUL”)
Located in the Southwest of Bulgaria, this hilly terrain is 250-330m above sea level and facing mostly south. The meaning of Aya is remarkably poetic and the art-referencing connotations fully correspond to our deep belief in the unbreakable and eternal connection between wine and creativity.
The climate is warm with constant breezes blowing from the Aegean Sea and high diurnal variation due to the cooling winds descending from the surrounding mountains. The soils are sandy with a high percentage of limestone and low humus content with a yellowish color, typical for the region.
The average age of our old vineyards is around 50 years and they include Cabernet Franc and the local endemic variety called Broadleaved Melnik Grapevine, named after its typical big leaves. We’ve also newly-planted Syrah, Censault, Grenache and Merlot to add more diversity to our wine portfolio.
The biodynamic principles here are in the hands of our agronomist Veselina Kasabova (Vesy) who rigorously adheres to AYA Estate Vineyards' philosophy.
Together with her team of loyal assistants, headed by Hristo Paralinov, Vesy boldly puts her biodynamic knowledge into practice and takes care of the good health of the vines that produce the grapes for the production of our fresh Colorito rosé, our wonderful Syrah and Cabernet Fran red wines, as well as the unique autochthonous varieties that we restore with great care and love - Shiroka Melnishka Loza and Ranna Melnishka Loza.
Philosophy
In both locations we grow our vines organically by adhering to biodynamic practices, our goal being to promote healthy and deep growth of the root system. The work in the vineyards is exclusively manual, which allows strict monitoring and quality control. Biodynamics and the belief that we work with nature, not against it, give us the strength to move forward.
Aya Estate Vineyards is in the process of organic certification and our goal is to receive the certificate by the end of 2024, and the one for biodynamic production by the end of 2027.
We believe that the biodynamic principles help with the true expression of the different varieties according to the specific terroir Our philosophy to follow entirely organic and biodynamic principles is applied both in the vineyards and during the vinification process.
