Tomislav Marković’s journey into wine begins far from the vineyard. Born and raised in Germany’s Rhine/Main region, with Croatian roots and Slovenian heritage, his early professional life unfolded not in cellars, but in Frankfurt’s financial world. Yet in 2011, he took a decisive turn — leaving behind his career in business administration to study oenology in Neustadt, marking the beginning of an entirely new chapter. Hands-on apprenticeships followed, including one at Domaine de Montille in Volnay, where he honed a Burgundian sense of restraint, structure, and respect for terroir.
Since 2016, Tomislav has served as an advisor in organic viticulture in Baden-Württemberg, but in parallel, he built his own domaine — gradually and deliberately. His first vintage came in 2015 using grapes from trusted friends. The road to acquiring land was slow: his first leased vineyard of 40-year-old Pinot Noir vines arrived in 2017; a 0.4-hectare plot planted with Sauvignon Blanc followed in 2019. Today, his estate remains artisanal in scale — in 2019, just 6,000 bottles were produced — but conceptually sharp and stylistically coherent.
Marković farms biodynamically, but without dogma. The focus is on healthy fruit, living soils, and manual vineyard work. Purchased grapes are always of high quality, mostly organic, though flexibility is part of his approach. In the cellar, the same philosophy applies: gentle extractions, wild yeast fermentation, long lees aging, and thoughtful use of oak. White wines are whole-bunch pressed and handled reductively; reds vary in stem inclusion and are fermented slowly after foot-treading.
His portfolio includes both experimentation and precision:
Weissburgunder: A tiny lot, fermented in old oak, followed by malolactic fermentation in new wood and a short time in steel. Around 400 bottles made — juicy and textural.
Chardonnay ‘Mach’: From granite soils, fermented without malolactic to preserve purity and fruit focus. Racked to steel after 10 months in barrel. Around 500 bottles.
Riesling ‘Quo Vadis’: A chalky, Burgundian-style Riesling with stone fruit, white pepper and tension. A distinctive voice in a region often chasing sweetness. Just under 1,000 bottles.
Sauvignon Blanc ‘Heerkretz’: From the famed, stony Grand Cru-like site in Siefersheim. A late-harvested, barrel-fermented Sauvignon with ripe tropical notes and serious depth. Around 650 bottles.
Chardonnay ‘Goldenes Horn’: From a cooler, east-facing plot next to Heerkretz. Whole-bunch pressed and matured in Tokaj oak, then in used French barrels. No malolactic. Focused, citrus-driven. Roughly 500 bottles.
Marković’s reds are no less defined:
Pinot Noir ‘Windspiel’: From 1990 vines, fully destemmed and matured in used oak. Fresh, forest-fruited, and bright. Around 1,000 bottles.
Pinot Noir ‘On the Rocks’: From a volcanic site atop the Oelberg vineyard — bold, mineral, partially whole-cluster and barrel-aged (50% new). Around 600 bottles.
Pinot Noir ‘Parabole’: Named after the parabolic shape of the plot in Eckberg, Kaiserstuhl. From early 1980s vines, biodynamically farmed. Partially whole-cluster, raised in used barrels. Around 600 bottles.
Tomislav Marković's wines are not about opulence or overt statement — they are about precision, energy, and patience. Each cuvée is a careful study in place and process, rooted in experience and driven by curiosity. For collectors and sommeliers alike, his work offers a compelling example of what happens when personal conviction meets thoughtful viticulture on a small but determined scale.
Filter