Viticulture and Wine Museum Aleksandrovac
The Viticulture and Wine Museum Aleksandrovac is located in the wine cellar of the Agricultural School of Aleksandrovac, which has been built in 1924, and in an unique way represents this blessed wine region of Serbia, and the famous metropolis of vine and wines of Serbia – the Župa Aleksandrovačka – the Zhupa of Aleksandrovac. The Viticulture and Wine growing Museum skillfully elaborates, collects, publish and arranges in collections various artifacts that represent long viticulture traditions of Zupa wine region. Decision to organize such a wine Museum in Aleksandrovac is supported by various reasons – the millennium long tradition of wine growing, the location itself and importance of the Zupa region in wine production in national level, the Zhupa vineyards that cover about 3000 hectares which makes it the largest wine area in Serbia, the rich assortment of vineyards from where come excellent wines and wines with geographic origin, generations of local population of Zupa who were for centuries connected with wine growing and wine production, existence of traditions of the Zhupa Wines which is famous for the most modern wine production, several dozens of small wine cellars which produce and keep wines in Aleksandrovac and the surrounding village, establishment of grape and fruit nursery and plantations in 1891 which was one of the first in the Kingdom of Serbia and covered the estate over 40 hectares, foundation of specialized viticulture – fruit growing School with seminary in 1921 which resulted in a number of oenologists and owners of wineries whose long tradition is well preserved and maintained until the present, around twenty of fields that are seasonal vineyard settlements which keep on the long tradition of viticulture and wine-growing in this region. The fields are a special group of grape growing settlements which have been preserved in their original forms only in the Zhupa wine region, beside those, but not the same ones, which still exist in the Rajac wine region villages of the Negotin Krajina wine region. They are set in the central part of the zhupa vineyards, in the close vicinity of Aleksandrovac. They were founded and remained in the middle of the vineyards. Poljanas – grape growing fields are very old settlements with rural architecture and features that make visitors truly amazed and remain in their memories.
The Zhupa of Aleksandrova – the Aleksandrovačka Župa is tranquil valley and the basin in the central part of the so-called “smaller” /narrower/ Serbia, located between mountains that belong to the Rhodope Mountains, and encircle the massifs of Kopaonik Mountain /2017m/ from southwest, and its branch of the Neradja Mt /1350m/, the Zeljin Mountain /1785m/ from the west, and the Ravna Planina Mountain /1543m/, and the Goč Mountain /1123m/ from the north, and its branch of the Ljukten Mountain /1219m/, and the Lisac Mountain /1065m/. The Zhupa Valley is surrounded on the east by slopes of the Jastrebac Mountain /1494m/.
The first written records on the Zhupa wine region Valley date from the end of the 12th century, when the grand zhupan /duke/ Stefan Nemanya, the founder of the first Medieval state of Serbia, gifted the Studenica Monastery with a number of villages in this area. In the founding charter of the Studenica Monastery from 1106 the villages of Popovac, Kozetin, Raklja, Velika Krusevica, along with wine cellars, were granted to the Studenica Monastery, “in order to supply the Monastery with wine”.
The climate of Aleksandrovac Zhupa /Aleksandrovačka župa/ belongs to the moderate-continental, with some features of the Mediterranean climate, due to orographic and hydro-graphic characteristics. Winters are mild, with low snowfall and temperatures around –10C. The extremely low temperatures are rare in the Zhupa region, that ever since highly contributed to wine growing. The highest precipitation period is from April til the mid of June, when rainfall is most needed, especially to the vine. Winds are rare, mostly north-west wind blows, but majority of days experience no winds. The term of “zhupa climate” refers to this area and its numerous benefits. For example, besides the excellent grapes, in the Zupa region some Mediterranean plants cultures are grown in open, like chestnut, almond and fig.
