Prokuplje – A Town Surrounded by Vineyards
Written records of vineyards around Prokuplje date back at least to the late 14th century, while modern genetic research confirms that Prokupac belongs to the ancient winemaking heritage of the Balkans.
A genetic study published in 2024 even identified Prokupac as the founder of a multi-generational family of traditional Balkan grape varieties.
Over time, viticulture became so deeply rooted in this region that everyday life in Prokuplje could hardly be separated from the vine.
The hills surrounding the town were covered with vineyards.
Among the well-known vineyard areas was Sokolica, where family accounts record vineyards planted as far back as the beginning of the 20th century.
A vineyard was not simply a business.
It was part of the home, the family and a way of life.
Sokolica, Donkeys and an Unusual Kind of “Training”
There were no cars taking people to vineyards on the hillsides.
They walked.
And they took their donkeys.
The animals carried tools and water uphill to the vineyards, and when harvest time arrived, they returned carrying wicker baskets filled with grapes.
There is also a fascinating local story connected with Sokolica, passed down through generations in Prokuplje.
At the bottom of the hill, a donkey would be given sugar.
But no water.
Thirsty after eating the sugar, the animal knew that water was waiting at the top and would set off along the familiar path towards the vineyard.
A simple form of countryside “training”.
The donkey learned the route, leaving its owner to load whatever needed to be transported.
Small stories like this perhaps explain better than anything else how closely people, animals and vineyards were once connected in the everyday life of this region.
When Prokuplje Was Known as “Magarevo”
A donkey in old Prokuplje was certainly nothing unusual.
It was a working animal and an important part of the local vineyard economy.
Historic photographs even show gatherings of donkey owners in the centre of Prokuplje, while local accounts tell of caravans of donkeys carrying baskets filled with grapes through the town.
During harvest season, the scene must have been extraordinary: people, carts, donkeys and enormous quantities of grapes arriving from the surrounding hills.
At times, kilometre-long lines of carts waited to deliver their grapes.
The connection between Prokuplje and donkeys became so strong that the town acquired a nickname still remembered by older generations:
Magarevo — roughly, “Donkey Town”.
One local account even recalls an old saying that a bride would bring “a vineyard and a donkey” as part of her dowry — the vineyard providing the grapes and the animal making work on the steep terrain possible.
Prokupac or Rskavac?
Travel from Toplica towards Župa and the story continues.
There, Prokupac was traditionally also known as Rskavac or Hrskavac, names associated with the grape’s firm, crunchy skin.
Župa became one of the regions where the variety survived even as its once widespread cultivation began to decline.
Prokupac is a vigorous and productive grape capable of producing distinctive red wines. Traditionally, it was also used to make the famous Serbian ružica, a style somewhere between rosé and light red wine.
Modern vineyard and cellar techniques have since demonstrated that this old variety is capable of producing far more serious and complex wines than it was once given credit for.
When the Vineyards Began to Disappear
The second half of the 20th century transformed Prokuplje.
Traditional viticulture gradually declined, production methods changed and international grape varieties became increasingly common.
Vineyards disappeared from some of the surrounding hills.
The donkeys disappeared from the streets.
The caravans carrying baskets of grapes became a memory.
But Prokupac did not disappear.
It survived in old vineyards and among families who refused to abandon the grape they had known for generations.
And then its comeback began.
The Return of Prokupac
In recent years, a new generation of Serbian winemakers has begun rediscovering something their ancestors already knew.
Prokupac has character.
Today, the grape is particularly associated with Toplica, Župa and the Tri Morave wine region, and winemakers are producing wines that no longer try to imitate Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot or any other international variety.
Quite the opposite.
Its greatest strength is becoming the fact that it is different.
Modern Prokupac can be fresh and fruit-driven, but it can also produce serious, structured wines capable of ageing.
That is why the grape is increasingly appearing wherever Serbia wants to present its own authentic gastronomic identity.
Serbia Is Not Discovered Only Through Sight
For many first-time visitors to Serbia, Belgrade is where the journey begins.
But Serbia does not end at the borders of its capital.
Travel south.
See the vineyards.
Sit down at the table.
Taste food that changes from one region to another.
Talk to the people.
And pour yourself a glass of wine made from a grape that was growing here long before Serbia became a tourist destination.
Because gastronomy is not simply what we eat and drink.
It is one of the ways we discover a country.
EXPO 2027 – An Opportunity to Discover Serbia Beyond Belgrade
During EXPO 2027, Belgrade will welcome visitors from around the world.
For many of them, it will be their first encounter with Serbia.
But a few days in Belgrade can be only the beginning.
Roads from the capital lead towards the Danube, mountains, spa towns, monasteries, historic cities — and vineyards.
And somewhere further south, among the hills of Toplica and Župa, a grape still grows that carries one of Serbia’s oldest wine stories.
Prokupac.
Once, it travelled down from Sokolica towards Prokuplje in wicker baskets carried on the backs of donkeys.
Today, it leaves Serbian wine cellars in bottles travelling around the world.
The way it travels has changed.
The story remains.
Discover Serbia with NERA
If you are coming to Serbia for EXPO 2027, leave some time to discover the country beyond the exhibition pavilions.
Its nature. Cities. History. Food. Wine. And people.
Some stories about Serbia can be read.
Prokupac is one of those you can taste. 🇷🇸🍷