Czech Republic Pinot Noir

The Czech Republic is a small country of 30,450 square miles divided into three administrative areas: the largest, Bohemia, in the west, juts into the middle of Germany; in the northeast, Czech Silesia is a small strip of land under Poland; and the remainder is Moravia, which borders Austria, Slovakia, and Germany and is where most of the country's vines are planted, especially in the south. The highest concentration of vineyards and producers are in the Moravian subregions of Velkopavlovická (named for the village of Velké Bílovice) and Mikulovská. 

There are many more villages growing a variety of classic European varietals as well as interesting crossings and hybrids, but most exports will be some combination of Pinot Gris, Riesling, Chard, Sauv Blanc, Gewurz, Gruner, and Welschriesling for whites; and Pinot Noir, Blaufränkisch, Zweigelt, Saint Laurent, and Cab for reds. Although wine culture goes back to the Roman era, high-quality, post-Communism exports have been a rarity until a group of "Autentisté" (natural) winemakers decided to pursue the ideals of organic, small-production, low-intervention, unfiltered/unfined wines with low levels of sulfites.