Wines from the Sea, Stones from the Earth
Vinas Mora is one of Croatia's most compelling new natural wine projects — a cooperative winery in the historic, UNESCO-protected coastal town of Primošten, Dalmatia, where the Adriatic Sea meets ancient limestone hills. Founded in 2020 by Kreso Petrekovic, a former New York sommelier and wine professional, alongside partners Neno Marinov and Niko Dukan, Vinas Mora emerged from an abandoned local cooperative to preserve a viticultural heritage that was on the verge of disappearing. The name is a play on words in Croatian: "wines from the sea," because the vineyards sit mere meters above the Adriatic, where Babić vines literally grow in the rocks. This is not a winery that follows fashion; it is a rescue mission for one of Dalmatia's most distinctive terroirs.
From New York to the Rocks of Primošten
The Vinas Mora story begins with Kreso Petrekovic, a Croatian-born sommelier and wine importer who built his career in New York City's natural wine scene. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020, Kreso retreated to his coastal house in Primošten — a historic peninsula town on the Dalmatian coast, south of Šibenik and near Split. What began as a temporary escape became a permanent calling.
Kreso had long advocated for drinking wines made by local farmers who had little commercial success — the kind of wines sold in plastic bottles on the side of the road. He discovered Josipa and Neno Marinov, a local couple producing Babić wine "as their elders did 100 years ago, with some improvements," selling their humble bottles to passersby. Together with Neno, they explored nearly abandoned winemaking facilities of a local cooperative — the site where most growers in the area had historically sold their grapes. The closing of this co-op would have devastated the entire local wine-growing community.
The opportunity to take over was too significant to ignore, and the necessity to keep the tradition alive was urgent. Joined by another friend and wine professional, Niko Dukan (one of the talents behind Karakterre), the three founded Vinas Mora with Kreso at its helm. What started as a pandemic project became a mission to preserve Primošten's unique viticultural heritage.
Primošten itself is a remarkable place — a historic town on a small peninsula connected to the mainland, surrounded by vineyards that cascade down to the sea. The area is UNESCO-protected, not merely for its beauty but for the extraordinary human effort that transformed previously rocky, inaccessible terrain into agricultural land through manual clearing over centuries. Dry-stone walls separate tiny plots with only three to four plants each, making it extremely hard to farm and harvest — impossible to use any machinery. This is hand-farming at its most extreme.
"Taking inspiration from Frank Cornelissen's deep focus on site through minimal inputs and small parcels, Vinas Mora highlights how delicious and diverse this corner of Croatia is."
— Leon & Son Wine
Crvenica Soils, Bush Vines & Extreme Hand-Farming
Vinas Mora's vineyards are farmed organically, worked entirely by hand in a landscape that defies mechanisation. The primary soil is crvenica — better known as terra rossa in the Carso region — created by the dissolution of limestone and dolomite. It is hard and tight, with very little humus, but the clay component allows it to absorb and retain water long enough to keep vines hydrated during the long, hot, and dry Mediterranean summers.
The vineyards sit mere meters above sea level, where Babić vines literally grow in the rocks. The bush-trained vines are scattered across tiny plots divided by ancient dry-stone walls — each plot holding just three to four plants. This is not merely romantic; it is brutally labour-intensive. Every vineyard task must be done by hand: pruning, tending, harvesting. The impossibility of machinery ensures that farming remains human-scale and that the vines are treated with individual attention.
The climate is deeply Mediterranean — warm days, seaside air, and the cooling influence of the Adriatic. If you drag your finger across the Adriatic on a map, you'll bump into Italy's Marche region. This maritime proximity gives the wines a distinct saline character and freshness that balances the warmth of the Dalmatian sun. The iron-rich soils inform the best wines here, contributing to Babić's dark colour and thick-skinned resilience.
Vinas Mora works with local farmers to source old vines from the Primošten hills. The vineyard sites span a range of vine ages, from 25-year-old certified organic plots to ancient bush-trained vines up to 100 years old. The oldest vines, going into the top cuvées, yield less than 0.5kg per vine — an extraordinarily low yield that concentrates flavour and complexity in every berry.
Certified organic farming. No machinery possible. Every task done by hand. Bush-trained vines in tiny stone-walled plots. Individual attention to each plant. Extreme labour, minimal intervention.
Terra rossa / crvenica soils from dissolved limestone and dolomite. Hard, tight, low humus. Clay component retains water through hot summers. Iron-rich, contributing dark colour and mineral backbone.
Historic peninsula town, UNESCO-protected. Vineyards cascading to the sea. Centuries of manual land clearing. Dry-stone walls defining tiny plots. Impossible terrain, extraordinary wine.
Primary focus on indigenous Babić — dark, thick-skinned, tannic. Also Debit, Marastina, Plavina, Lasin. Preserving varieties that define Dalmatian identity. Not international grapes; pure Croatian heritage.
Short Maceration, Spontaneous Fermentation & Minimal Sulfur
In the cellar, Kreso Petrekovic practices a philosophy of restraint and precision. Having spent years tasting and importing natural wines in New York, he understands that Babić's natural tendency is toward heaviness and high alcohol. His mission is to tame this heft while preserving the grape's innate character — picking with a potential ABV of 13–13.5%, destemming for native fermentation, and macerating very quickly. No wine sees more than 5 days of maceration, a deliberate choice to tame Babić's tannic potential while extracting colour and flavour.
The techniques are simple but exacting:
Harvest: All grapes are hand-harvested from bush vines in small crates, preserving berry integrity in the extreme terrain.
Destemming: Grapes are gently destemmed to avoid harsh green tannins while allowing clean fermentation.
Maceration: Deliberately short — 4–5 days maximum for all cuvées. This is the key to Vinas Mora's style: taming Babić's natural tannic power while maintaining its dark fruit and mineral core. The "Barbba" sees a split approach: 35% with 7-hour maceration, 65% with 3-day maceration.
Fermentation: Spontaneous, with indigenous yeasts only. Open vat fermentation for the reds, neutral oak with indigenous yeasts for the "Barbba" blend. No temperature control. No additives.
Ageing: All wines age for one year in a combination of fiberglass and 500L neutral barrels. This dual approach preserves freshness while adding subtle texture and integration. The "Andreis" splits ageing between neutral oak (30%) and polyethylene (70%).
Bottling: No fining. No filtration. Minimal added sulfur — typically 10 mg/L for the "Andreis" and "Barbba," with minimal amounts for the "Kaamen" range. The focus is on purity and transparency.
The portfolio is structured as a progression through vine age and intensity, each wine revealing a different facet of Primošten's rocky terroir:
"Andreis" (Babić, 25-year-old vines): The entry point. Certified organic, shortest maceration in the lineup. Easy-drinking, fresh, approachable. Blue fruit, chalk, and salt.
"Kaamen" (Babić, 50-year-old vines): The mid-tier. All bush-trained vines, fermented in 1000L cask. Saltier, firmer than the Andreis, with the same delicious blue fruit character. The standard-bearer.
"Kaamen II" (Babić, 80–100-year-old vines): From incredibly low-yielding old vines. More heavily spiced profile, greater concentration, and a northern Rhône-like smokiness that emerges with age.
"Kaamen III" (Babić, up to 100-year-old vines): The "magma" of the range. From the oldest vines yielding less than 0.5kg per vine. Powerful, long, impressive. The definitive statement of Primošten Babić.
"Kaamen III" Babić — "The Magma of the Range"
The "Kaamen III" is Vinas Mora's most profound wine — a Babić from vines up to 100 years old that demonstrates what happens when extreme age, minimal intervention, and impossible terroir converge in a single bottle.
Sourced from the oldest bush-trained vines in the Primošten hills, these plants yield less than 0.5kg per vine — a concentration that is almost unheard of in modern viticulture. The grapes are hand-harvested, destemmed, and undergo 4–5 days of maceration in open vats before spontaneous fermentation with indigenous yeasts. Ageing for one year in fiberglass and 500L neutral barrels builds integration without masking the wine's raw power. Bottled unfined and unfiltered, with minimal added sulfur.
In the glass, it is deep and dark — the colour of crushed berries and Adriatic twilight. The nose is a complex weave of blue fruit, chalk, sea salt, and a distinct northern Rhône-like smokiness that brings spice and meatiness. The palate is powerful and long, with firm but refined tannins, vibrant acidity, and a mineral finish that seems to extend indefinitely. This is not a wine for casual drinking; it is a wine for contemplation, for proving that Croatian Babić belongs in the global conversation alongside the great wines of the Mediterranean. Serve at 16–18°C. Decant. Age 5–10 years. ~$65 / ~€60.
The Vinas Mora Range
Kreso Petrekovic produces a focused, terroir-driven portfolio from organically farmed vineyards in Primošten, Dalmatia, Croatia. All wines are hand-harvested from bush vines, spontaneously fermented with indigenous yeasts, and bottled with minimal or no fining, filtration, or sulfur. The portfolio spans a progression of Babić expressions by vine age, plus a unique co-fermented field blend — all made exclusively from indigenous Croatian varieties. Prices are approximate and in USD/EUR.