Tikveš Winery: Balancing Tradition and Business Excellence

Balkan’s Premier Trophy Winner

The path from the former mass winery to today’s premium wines was long, but a clear vision, painstaking work, and insistence on top quality brought today’s well-known, recognizable, and award-winning Macedonian brand, Tikveš.

Gone are the days when Tikveš Winery was just a behemoth from socialist times. Today, it operates five boutique wineries under its umbrella, Tikveš Chateaux & Domaines, and boasts well-recognized and premium brands: Domaine Barovo, Domaine Bela Voda, Domaine Babuna, Domaine Lepovo, and Château de Gourdon in French Côtes du Rhône.

In many ways, the development path of the most prestigious regional winery is best told by Marko Stojaković, chief oenologist of the Tikveš winery, in the episode of the Wine Vision by Open Balkan podcast.

He finished agronomy in Bordeaux, oenology in Montpellier, and collaborated with Philippe Cambie, one of the most famous oenologists in France, from whom he learned the trade, especially getting to know the most prestigious wines of the south. Through him, he came to Tikveš in 2010, where he works to this day, building a team of oenologists and agronomists who monitor the entire production process.

For the best, world-recognized wines, it is important to determine the terroir, to grow a vineyard according to modern green standards, and in every detail and step of the way—from growing grapes to the most high-end technologies in wine production. Seeking the unique quality of premium wine remains the main goal of this winery, as does introducing it to wine lovers all over the world.