📍 Skadar Lake Basin

The Skadar Lake basin is Montenegro's main wine-growing area. It lies in a warm basin around the capital Podgorica and Lake Skadar, the largest lake in southern Europe, which Montenegro shares with Albania. The climate is mild Mediterranean with a long hot summer, so grapes ripen well. The basin is part of Montenegrin wine and has a national geographical indication.

It includes the subregions of Podgorica, Crmnica and Rijeka Nahija. Near Podgorica lies the huge Plantaže vineyard on the Ćemovsko field, one of the largest single vineyards in Europe. Crmnica, on the western shore of the lake, is known for white wine from the local Krstač grape.

The main red grape is Vranac, which accounts for more than 70% of Montenegrin wine. Vranac gives dark, full-bodied, tannic wine. Next to it grows Kratošija, the local name for Zinfandel (Primitivo). White Krstač gives a fresh wine with good acidity.

The rest of the country's vineyards are closer to the Adriatic, but this remains the main wine area. In all, Montenegro has about 2,800 hectares of vineyards (2017 data), and Vranac and Kratošija are regarded as the country's native grapes.