Home › Wine Notes › 젤코바와이너리 (Zelkova Winery, 강창석)
Zelkova, Premium 2013
RedSouth Korea2013
By Daniel Min · Tasted 2020-03-23 · Published 2026-09-23 · Updated 2026-09-23
At a glance
In one line
4.0/5 — higher than Vivino's 3.7 average · A red made from sanmaru — a wild Korean grape — at a small winery in Sangju, Gyeongbuk.
No critic score is listed on Vivino.
Market note: It is not confirmed whether this wine is even listed on Wine-Searcher — as a small-batch Korean wine, it may simply have no international market pricing data (checked Sept 2026).
What this wine is
Zelkova Winery didn't start out growing sanmaru — it started out growing Chardonnay. Kang Chang-seok, a fermentation microbiologist who had been researching apple fermentation in Daegu, moved to Sangju, Gyeongbuk in 2006 to plant a vineyard, and his first vines were European Chardonnay. But around 2009, severe winter frost damage wiped out most of them, forcing a complete change of plan. What he turned to instead was sanmaru — a wild Korean grape with small berries and thick skins that extract strong tannin, and cold-hardy enough to survive Sangju's winters. He founded the winery in 2010 and named it after a 500-year-old zelkova tree standing at the entrance to his hometown village — a symbol, he's said, of holding to unwavering principles. It's counted among the earliest attempts in Korea to make wine from a wild native grape rather than a conventional wine variety.
Korea's wine industry itself is young. Majuang, released in 1977, is generally credited as the first wine made with domestic technology — but it followed an "import and transplant" model, bringing in German Riesling and planting it around Gyeongsan, a region with a climate resembling the Mosel. Nearly fifty years later, wineries like Zelkova have taken the opposite path: instead of transplanting a foreign variety, they're turning a grape that already grew wild on that land into wine. This Premium is one result of that shift.
What the world says
This 2013 vintage has been rated by 26 people on Vivino, averaging 3.7 (49 ratings for the label overall, 3.6) — the smallest sample of any wine this magazine has covered, and no critic score is on file.
The flavor keywords lead with oak, vanilla and baking spice at 17 mentions, followed by black fruit like plum (13) — with a sample this small, these numbers are better read as a rough direction than an authoritative ranking.
"Balance meets sour acidity after an hour of aerating. No added sugar, yet I could feel powerful black fruit on the nose." — Vivino review, Mar 2020, 4.0 stars
"A special wine made from an unusual Korean wild grape. Creamy, ripe plum and some spice come through first. An interesting Korean wine." — Vivino review, Mar 2020, 4.0 stars
My score of 4.0 matches these two overseas reviewers exactly — with such a small sample, the handful of reviews quoted in this piece make up a meaningful share of this wine's total record.
How I drank it
"Cream, almond, baking spice, black fruit, oak, cherry, cranberry... Many of you probably tried this after seeing Yanggang's YouTube video, but this is a wine that'll surprise you — a Korean wine with an aroma like this!! The condensed-milk note that comes up a lot reads almost like a Bordeaux aroma, but milder — makes you realize sanmaru grapes can make this good a wine too. On the palate, surprisingly, I felt a Burgundian finesse toward the finish — not a heavyweight or a long finish, but a Korean wild-grape wine with a character you won't find anywhere else!!" 23 March 2020, 4.0 stars.
The "Yanggang's YouTube video" in the note refers to a Korean wine YouTuber, "Wine Director Yanggang," whose review of Zelkova was making the rounds at the time — a sign that video was part of what was drawing new attention to Korean wine, and likely part of how I came across this bottle myself. What's interesting in the note is the double comparison — on the nose, "like a Bordeaux aroma," but on the palate, "Burgundian finesse." That's a way of describing the gap between the wine's rich oak-and-vanilla first impression and its actually light texture in the mouth, borrowed from France's two flagship regions. The closing line — "a character you won't find anywhere else" — reads as an acknowledgment that this wine won on sanmaru's own terms rather than trying to imitate an international variety.
Where this wine shows up
Majuang, made by planting imported German Riesling in Gyeongsan for its Mosel-like climate, is credited as Korea's first domestically made wine. Nearly fifty years later, wineries like Zelkova took the opposite path, turning a native wild grape into wine instead of transplanting a foreign variety.
Korea.net (Korean Culture and Information Service) — Majuang, Korea's first wine · Wine21.com — History of Korean wine
Artwork and stills are not reproduced for copyright reasons; scenes are summarised.
Vivino community data
2013 vintage rating distribution (26 ratings, average 3.7)
| 5★ | 1 (4%) | |
| 4★ | 12 (46%) | |
| 3★ | 12 (46%) | |
| 2★ | 1 (4%) | |
| 1★ | 0 (0%) |
Most-mentioned aromas
| Family | Mentions | Top keywords |
|---|---|---|
| Oak | 17 | oak 6 · vanilla 4 · baking spice 2 · brown butter 1 · butterscotch 1 |
| Black fruit | 13 | black fruit 6 · plum 6 · dark fruit 1 |
| Earth | 4 | mushroom 2 · balsamic 1 · leather 1 |
| Microbio | 3 | cream 3 |
| Non-oak | 3 | almond 3 |
| Spices | 3 | anise 1 · aniseed 1 · mint 1 |
| Red fruit | 2 | cherry 1 · cotton candy 1 |
Structure:
Average by vintage (all vintages: 49 ratings, average 3.6)
| Vintage | Average | Ratings |
|---|
My original note (Vivino, 2020-03-23)
“cream almond baking spice black fruit oak cherry cranberry 많은분들이 최근 양갱유튭 보고 드셨겠지만~~^^ 한국와인에서~ 이런 아로마가~~ 하면서 놀라실 와인!! 연유가 많이 언급되는게 보르도 아로마 같기도하면서 마일드한게 머루포도^^ 가 와인으로 만들어도 이렇게 좋구나~~ 느끼게 된다~~ 팔렛에서는 의외로 브루고뉴의 섬세함이 느껴지면서~~ 마무리~~ 중후한 무게감이나 롱피니쉬는 아니지만~~ 다른곳에선 찾을 수 없음을 가진 특성있는 한국머루와인!!”
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→Frequently asked questions
What kind of wine is Zelkova Premium 2013?
A red wine from Zelkova Winery in Sangju, Gyeongbuk Province, South Korea, made from sanmaru, a wild native grape. The first Korean wine featured in this magazine. Vivino: 26 ratings averaging 3.7; no critic score on file.
How much does it cost?
World average price: to be confirmed via Wine-Searcher (not listed on Wine-Searcher (Sept 2026)) — whether this small-production Korean wine is even listed is unconfirmed.
What food pairs well with it?
No food-pairing data is registered on Vivino. Given sanmaru's thick-skinned tannin and black-fruit character, it should pair reasonably with lightly seasoned Korean meat dishes.
What is sanmaru?
A branch of wild grape native to Korea, with small berries, thick skins that yield strong tannin, and good cold hardiness. Zelkova Winery switched to this variety after losing its Chardonnay vines to winter frost damage in 2009.
Links & sources
View on Vivino · Prices on Wine-Searcher
- Vivino — wine page and community data
- Korea Financial News (kbanker.co.kr) — Sangju Zelkova Winery feature
- Daegu Ilbo — Zelkova Winery feature (Strong Small Farms series)
- Korea.net (Korean Culture and Information Service) — Majuang, Korea's first wine
- Wine21.com — History of Korean wine
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Same producerMagnotta Limited Edition Cabernet Franc Icewine 2016
Canada · Niagara★★★★☆Same producerWilliam Hill Central Coast Chardonnay 2015
United States · Central Coast★★★★★Highly rated by DanielAntinori, Tenuta Tignanello 'Solaia' 2012
Italy · Tuscany★★★★★Highly rated by DanielChâteau Cheval Blanc, Le Petit Cheval 2004
France · Bordeaux★★★★★Highly rated by DanielKrug, Grande Cuvée (NV)
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