Petrov - Baroque, truly something to catch your eye

The settlement of Petrov was originally a water-fortified settlement that probably formed part of the fortifications against the Hungarians. Written documents mention the settlement for the first time in 1412. The village is of agricultural character with a significant share of viticulture and orchards. From 1580, Petrov was also a spa centre for the region of Slovácko and the settlement is trying to renew this tradition, which was still in suspension as late as 1987. Another opportunity for developing the village and extending services for tourists is presented by the historical “Blaťákův Kanál” waterway. A natural rarity is Petrovské Meadows (Petrovské Louky), the remainder of a vast complex of regularly flooded meadows with characteristic flora and the presence of endangered animal species. Vines were grown in the region of Southeastern Moravia probably at the time of the Great Moravia Empire. The verifiable roots of viticulture in the environs of Strážnice date back to the 16th century. Helana Kotalíková mentions, in her book, a variety of vine that is rarely grown nowadays but used to be very common in the old days: “In my youth so-called frašták was grown a lot in the environs of Strážnice: This was an undemanding variety that did not need much treatment. It was a very sour grape. They used to say it had taken its coat off. But still it was dry and good and today it is a great rarity. Then, it was a very common sort in vineyards and farmers would mix it with Lamberger and call this mixture ryšáček... And also the variety of Otelo used to be grown in the area. This was very intoxicating and heady wine. Especially Petrov was famous for this wine. When the farms were collectivized, they ordered the citizens of Petrov to get rid of Otelo and plant their vineyards with some cultivated vines.”      

Underground cellars without pressing houses

A significant monument in the settlement is the chapel of Mary the Painful (Panny Marie Bolestné) with ornamental decoration typical for the Slovácko region. An impressive folk building guards the entrance to one of the most valuable complexes of wine buildings in Moravia. In 1983, it was declared a preserved monument reservation of folk architecture. The wine cellars in Plže are already referred to in the 15th century; later these cellars were used not only to store wine but also as a hiding place against the hardships of war. The locality, whose name is derived from the shape of cellars dug up in pliable yellow soil that were reinforced by tunnel vaulting, was probably constructed together with the planting of vineyards. These constructions belong to a style of underground cellars which lack pressing houses; the function of a pressing house is fulfilled by a rectangular room behind a brick front. And it is just these fronts that constitute a distinctive artistic and aesthetic feature of the cellars in Vlčnov. Since the 16th century, they have been built according to a unified style. The artistic rendering is dominated by Baroque architectural elements featuring an arch over the vaulted entrance into the space before the cellar itself. White lime paint with a blue stripe at the bottom and a door of oak intensify the aesthetic impression. At the front of the cellar where the blue stripe on the side wall of the žudro is replaced by red, not only is good wine to be found but also a girl eligible for marriage.  

The spirit of a place that has not changed for centuries

The cellars were built by the wine makers themselves with the assistance of relatives and neighbours and under the supervision of a bricklayer foreman, which is in fact the way that this functioned up until recently. The width of most cellars is around 3 meters and the length, as a rule, 15 meters – only exceptionally are the cellars any longer. The layer of soil above the cellar and its thickness help to maintain the favourable indoor climate important for the quality of wine. Only so-call ‘rampúchy’ rise above the earthen mound, which served originally as massive stone chimneys. The space in front of the cellar (a pressing room) is a working and social room in most cellars of Petrov. At the time of vintage, grapes are processed there. The rest of the year it serves as a place for sessions and wine tasting. The oldest cellars can be identified by a narrow underground corridor built of small stones. You can find these corridors in cellars n. 41, 43, 48 and 38, the former cellar being one of the most valuable cellars of the colony with very distinct decoration. Wine cellars in Plže make up a one-sided or two-sided street-like area, with two village squares that serve as social centres for the whole complex. This is also where you can find one of the largest cellars, originally a property of the Magnis family who owned the manor and chateau in Strážnice. Cereal pits, known from other regions too, used to be in the shape of a jug in Plže, their depth being 3 metres, burnt out with fire. The top opening of the pit was covered with a flat stone that also served as a floor. Nonetheless, this harmonic complex in Plže, which has lain unchanged for centuries, is not a dead museum. The spirit of the place, skilled wine makers and lovers of wine make for a convivial and merry community. There you will not only come across straw fagots on cellar doors that have marked búdas where you can taste wine since the time of the First Republic, but you’ll also be welcomed with kindness and open doors. In Petrov, you will always meet a wine maker who will draw wine from a barrel that may be full and add a story concerning the past and present of Plže. The Lemberger we tasted in the cellar used as a setting for an unforgettable scene from the renowned Czech film “How Does Life Taste for Poets” was of fiery colour, full taste and had the fragrance of fresh fruit.