Since wine bars aren’t exactly a dime a dozen in Ljubljana, true-blue wine aficionados will definitely appreciate this new addition to the local wine bar scene. Matija, who opened the new bar with the help of his partner, Katja Geltar, his sister, Katja Šuklje, and her partner, the French oenologist Guillaume Antalick, said that rather than trying to fill a market niche, they decided to open a new wine bar simply because they love wine.

“Me and my little sister virtually grew up in a vineyard, as did our father. Winemaking is in our blood, so we did what came naturally to us. We decided to take it to the next level, so we opened a wine bar – to reach out to our customers and to create some added value.”
Šuklje’s new wine bar, located on Na Bregu 10, is a welcome addition to Ljubljana’s burgeoning wine bar scene. The wine bar itself is housed in a semi-abandoned heritage-listed building.

Harald Draušbaher, the industrial and graphic designer who owns the building, rented out the ground floor to the Šuklje family for (at least) ten years. He and his company, Studio Breg, also helped design the interior of the wine bar. “The idea was simple: we wanted to preserve the natural beauty of this magnificent building. We also enlisted the help of Bobič Yachting Interior, who made all the wooden parts for the bar,” said Šuklje.

“Vino Music Mood”
Before opening their own wine bar, the young team of wine connoisseurs visited a number of similar drinking establishments; however, they stressed that they haven’t copied anyone else’s ideas. They’re especially proud of “Vino Music Mood”, a unique concept of matching your wine with your mood. The concept is simple. There are six music genres to choose from, and the maître will recommend a wine based on your choice of music: light and refreshing wines for your average pop fan, and a Movia White Wine for someone who’s in the mood for a classical symphony.

They also host a Wine Club, events with local winegrowers, wine-tasting events, as well as wine flights (four samples for 9 euros), where bottles of wine can be bought at a discounted price. Wine Bar Šuklje is a bar that engages with their guests.

“The idea behind our wine bar is to give our guests more than just a glass of wine. Our goal is to impart knowledge. I suppose this is going to be our biggest challenge so far, but our staff know what they’re doing, they’re passionate about wine, and that’s what matters,” said Šuklje, adding that promoting their own brand of wine is one of their priorities – but it’s far from being the only one. “We want to put White Carniola (Bela krajina) on the wine map, and we sell around 25 or 30 wines from 8 White Carniolan wineries. Moreover, we want to show off our whole country to our guests, so we have wines from all the major regions of Slovenia.”

A rich selection of imported wines
Wine Bar Šuklje also stock a wide selection of international wines. Given that their oenologist hails from France, it comes as no surprise that most of their imported wines are from France. “We stock 140 imported wines, and we boast an extensive selection of French wines. We import all of these wines ourselves, and we sell top-shelf as well as budget-friendly wines,” said Guillaume and Matija, adding that their goal is to promote international wines to a Slovenian audience. Their selection of wines includes South American, South African, Californian, as well as Georgian wines.

They currently offer 38 wines by the glass (20 Slovenian and 18 imported wines).

Kaja Sajovic; translated by D. V.