During a recent trip to Croatia, a group explored the island of Korčula, renowned for its plavac mali red wine—a robust, flavorful varietal derived from a locally grown grape with roots tracing back to zinfandel. The island also claims historical ties to Marco Polo, though the matter remains contentious. In 2011, former Croatian president Stjepan Mesić sparked diplomatic tensions by asserting Polo’s Croatian birthplace during a museum opening in China, prompting Italian media to accuse Croatia of cultural appropriation. While historical consensus places Polo’s origins within the Venetian Republic (then under Hungarian rule, not Croatia), the island’s Pilić family—whose name translates to “chicken” in Croatian—may have influenced the Italian moniker “Polo,” as aristocratic families often adopted dual-language names for convenience.
The island’s legacy intertwines with both its wines and historical narratives