This map shows the wineries that welcome visitors for a tasting, a vineyard tour or a meal: from the stone houses of Crmnica and the terraces of the Riječka nahija above Lake Skadar, to the cellars around Podgorica and the Šipčanik tunnel, and the vineyards above Herceg Novi and in Grbalj. Every visit should be booked ahead, and tours are easiest to plan region by region.
A map of wineries that welcome visitors and Montenegro's five wine roads: Crmnica, the Riječka nahija, around Podgorica, the Bay of Kotor and the Nikšić hinterland.
Crmnica and Lake Skadar
Crmnica, the valley that runs down from the coastal mountains to Virpazar, is the cradle of vranac and the area with the most family cellars. In Orahovo near Virpazar the Mašanović family has made wine for more than ten generations, in Godinje Garnet pours vranac and Chardonnay on a terrace beside the oldest house in the village, and the Kopitović family in Donji Brčeli keeps its wine in a home cellar more than 300 years old. Above the villages are Buk in Bukovik, Klisić in Limljani, where you can also stay the night, and Lipovac in Građani.
Virpazar is the handiest base for the Crmnica cellars, and the day can end with a boat ride on the lake. In late February Virpazar hosts the Wine and Bleak Festival.
The Riječka nahija
The villages above Rijeka Crnojevića and Lake Skadar, on the road from Cetinje to the lake, have terraced vineyards and small cellars. Vukmirović in Gornji Ceklin has a cellar dug into the ground and offers rooms, Rakčević in Smokovci is a rural household in a century-old house, and in Rvaši and Drušići, the best-known wine village of the area, you'll find Mrkan and Janković. Kratošija is poured here alongside vranac, and a visit pairs easily with Cetinje and Rijeka Crnojevića.
Did you know?
The Šipčanik cellar, in the tunnel of a former military airport more than 30 metres underground, keeps Plantaže's oldest archive wine: Lesendro from the 1979 vintage.
Podgorica, Piperi, Kuči and the Lješanska nahija
A few kilometres from Podgorica lies Ćemovsko polje and Plantaže's Šipčanik cellar, in a 356-metre tunnel more than 30 metres underground. On the northern edge of the city, in Rogami and Pričelje near ancient Doclea, are the family wineries Zenta Vučinić, Mola and the Radević estate. In Kuči, in the village of Ubli, Rajković tends a vineyard about 150 years old on a traditional pergola, and in the Lješanska nahija Bogojević grows unirrigated vines on a hillside. Near Danilovgrad, beside the old watermills of Zagorak, is Dar Bošković.
The Bay of Kotor and the hinterland
Above Savina Monastery in Herceg Novi, on a slope 70–120 metres above the sea, is Castel Savina, and in Mirac above Grbalj, at about 650 metres and 11 km from Kotor, Storia di Pietra looks over the bay and the open sea. Furthest on the map is Dabović in Nudo near Grahovo, where the family has made wine for more than a century.
