“When the French stay quiet after tasting it, you know you’re onto something.”

Partnership

From the vineyard to the seasons to the liquid in the bottle, wine, at its core, expresses the notion of evolution.

As winter moves to summer, vines shift from dormancy to growth.

As wine ages in the cellar, its flavors and aromas transform.

As a winemaker grows in his life, his perspective shifts.

Peter Gönc, long a restless force in the Slovenian wine industry, embodies such momentum. While his early winemaking days sought to challenge industry norms with minimal intervention wines and bold labels gilded in his unique brand of ‘cool,’ Peter has grown eager for a new challenge. His latest project, Ana, eschews rebellion. Instead, it pursues refinement, introspection, and perhaps, most importantly, permanence.

“It’s the best wine I’ve ever made,” Peter says without hyperbole. Two years of meticulous research and patience went into the Chardonnay that marks the launch of Ana, a wine that has already caught the attention of Masters of Wine and Decanter judges. “When the French stay quiet after tasting it, you know you’re onto something,” he adds.

As Peter describes, inspiration didn’t strike in a vineyard or cellar, but in a wine bar in Tel Aviv. He was offered a choice — something international or something local. He opted for local. The sommelier poured him Garage de Papa, an Israeli wine made by Ido Lewinsohn. “I took one sip and thought, ‘What am I doing? I can do so much more than this.’”

Peter says he wasn’t struck by a competitive impulse but a moment of clarity. “What legacy do I want to leave behind?” he questioned.

This self-examination runs through Ana. Named after all the women in his family going back generations, the wine bears the weight of personal struggle. “Winemaking can be a lonely job,” he admits. “And the pressure of being a fourth-generation winemaker — it’s always there, whether you want it to be or not.”

Peter speaks openly about grappling with anxiety and depression, about pushing through in search of meaning. “Ana isn’t just a wine but a reflection on what it takes to get here.”

Slovenian wine endured shifts in power and phylloxera, but the most consequential challenge of the 20th century came under communist rule when Slovenia formed part of Yugoslavia. During this period, the government controlled wine production, encouraging wineries to focus on the volume game for supermarket chains while prohibiting private ownership.

After Slovenia’s independence in 1991, a new generation of winemakers emerged, and with them, a chance at creative expression. The surge in private production fueled a dynamic movement that embraced avant-garde and classical approaches to winemaking. Recently, Peter has observed a more subtle shift as the industry reflects on its next iteration.

For Peter, that iteration looks like an artist moving through periods of reflection. Picasso’s Blue, Rose, and Cubism phases.

As Peter sees it, Ana isn’t a new beginning but another chapter. Alongside his Chardonnay, the lineup will include a Pinot Noir, a Pinot Blanc, a Chardonnay blend, and an ambitious Slovenian sparkling wine developed in collaboration with friends in Champagne. “We’re exchanging knowledge, learning from each other,” he says. Quantities will be small at 2,000 bottles of the Chardonnay. He has to aim high. “I want this to be in the upper echelon of wine. I’m not trying to move cases. I want to create something exceptional.”

Despite this shift, Peter hasn’t abandoned his past. “I still love the wines I’ve made before. They were a reflection of who I was at the time. But now, I’m drawn to whites. There’s something about their structure, their energy. When I work with white wines, my friends tell me they see a different spark in my eyes.”

As for whether Peter’s Chardonnay is Slovenia’s best wine to date? Peter shakes his head. “I could never say that. I’m not built that way.” But there’s something in his voice, less about proving a point, more about conviction. He’s making the best wine of his life. And for Peter, that’s enough.