The story of the Statera family wine estate dates back to the second half of the 20th century, when the solid foundations of our viticulture and winemaking were established. With dedication and passion, Viktor Kotolenko, the founder of the estate’s wine story, together with his wife Terezija, began cultivating the first vines of various grape varieties, including Welschriesling, Sauvignon Blanc, Šipon (Furmint), Chardonnay, and Yellow Muscat.
In the 1990s, their son Slavko Kotolenko, together with his wife Marija, took over the family winery, then known as Vinogradništvo Vinski hram. The estate began to develop and expand intensively. By the end of the century, we were also engaged in on-farm tourism. The satisfaction of our guests with both wine and cuisine provided sincere confirmation of the quality of our work and, at the same time, an even greater motivation to continue. As our family expanded by two more members towards the end of the millennium – the sons Domen and Gregor – the era of farm tourism had to come to an end.
The estate experienced its most intensive expansion during the first decade of the 21st century. Winemaking continues to evolve, modernise, and grow, with regular investments in new vineyard plantings and vineyard reconstructions. The younger son, Gregor, has been involved in the diverse work from an early age, as, being the grandson and son of role models and winemakers, he is committed to continuing the family tradition.
Thus, different generations are involved in co-creating our story, each contributing and complementing one another exceptionally well. Three generations and one shared goal: to produce top-quality wines that express varietal character and the distinctive identity of our wine-growing region.
- 1967 – foundations of a spatially planned, manually built wine cellar
- 1975 – first public presentation of our wines and first awarded wines
- 1985 – planting of the first modern terraced vineyard (2.5 ha)
- 1993 – opening of on-farm tourism
- 1997 – new vertical vineyard (2.5 ha)
- 1998 – closure of on-farm tourism and full focus on wine production and sales
- 2003 – new vertical vineyard (3.5 ha)
- 2004 – renovation and reconstruction of the terraced vineyard (2.5 ha)
- 2006 – new wine cellar connected to the original cellar
- 2007 – new vertical vineyard (2 ha)
- 2011 – new agricultural building with facilities for grape processing, wine bottling, and a modern wine cellar
- 2015 – renovation of the terraced vineyard
- 2017 – new terraced vineyard (1 ha)
- 2018 – introduction of modern, environmentally friendly viticultural machinery
- 2019 – modernization of the cellar with new stainless-steel tanks and a cooling system
- 2020 – launch of the new STATERA brand
- 2022 – reconstruction of two vineyards
- 2023 – remediation and drainage of multiple landslides in the vineyards
- 2024 – new cellar and storage facilities
- 2025 – EUIPO trademark registration – STATERA®
- 2026 – launch of the new premium line Triolith
Slavko was born on 7 October 1967, the same year the first cellar facilities were constructed. From an early age, he was involved in the work on his parents’ farm, Viktor and Terezija Kotolenko. He attended primary school in his hometown of Zavrč and later in Cirkulane. He completed his secondary vocational education as a technician in agricultural machinery.
Immediately after finishing school, he became employed at a nearby agricultural cooperative. Driven by the desire to establish his own winery, he took over the family wine-growing estate in 1993 and fully dedicated himself to viticulture and winemaking. Until his son took over cellar operations, he managed an annual production of approximately 100,000 litres of wine. Through his integrity, reliability in relations with customers, and continuity of supply, he established a stable wine market, primarily in the Varaždin County region and its surroundings. To this day, he remains responsible for this market segment, as well as for investments, mechanisation, and the modernisation of the machinery fleet.
Marija, born on 21 August 1969, grew up on a farm in the Prlekija region. She attended primary school in Podgorci and later in Velika Nedelja. After completing secondary agricultural education in Ptuj, she enrolled in agronomy studies in Maribor and graduated in 1992 as an agricultural engineer.
Together with her husband Slavko, she began their shared winemaking and viticultural journey in 1993. Today, she is responsible for winter pruning of the vines, phytosanitary protection of vineyards, and the timing and execution of green works such as shoot thinning, removal of excess shoots, leaf removal, and crop thinning.
Born on 28 January 1998, he grew up in his hometown of Zavrč and spent most of his time on the family wine estate as well as on the football pitch. After completing primary education, he enrolled at the Secondary School for Food Technology (Biotechnical School) in Ptuj.
During his education, he completed professional internships at the largest Slovenian winery as well as at Cavagri – Cooperativa Agricola do Alto Cávado in Portugal, near the city of Braga in the Vinho Verde wine region. During his secondary education, he also completed training as a wine, must, and grape product taster at the Biotechnical Faculty in Ljubljana. He graduated from secondary school as a top-achieving student (golden graduate) and subsequently enrolled in bachelor’s studies in Food Science and Nutrition at the Biotechnical Faculty of the University of Ljubljana.
During his bachelor’s studies, he completed professional training at one of Slovenia’s larger wineries and, through various courses, visited numerous domestic and international winemakers. In his fifth semester, he studied at the renowned Universitat Politècnica de València in Spain, where he wrote a project paper titled The Role of Microorganisms in Wine Production. He completed his bachelor’s studies with a thesis focusing on the freshness and ageing of young white wines.
He continued his education at the master’s level in Food Science at the same faculty, graduating with an extensive master’s thesis titled The Effect of Deaeration Using Inert Gases During Bottling on Wine Quality. After completing his master’s studies, he travelled to New Zealand, to the city of Blenheim in the Marlborough wine region, world-famous for Sauvignon Blanc wines. There, during harvest season, he worked as a press operator in one of the most modern and highly regarded wineries in New Zealand.
Alongside his studies in food technology in Ljubljana, since 2020, when he also introduced the new Statera brand, he has been responsible for grape quality control, grape processing, wine production and bottling, presentations and tastings, as well as sales and marketing. At the family wine estate Statera, he also takes care of the modernisation of the overall visual identity and the development of a new marketing approach for the Statera Elegant, Statera Single Vineyard, and Statera Triolith lines across various wine markets.
In his free time, he primarily dedicates himself to spending quality time with family and friends, playing football, and hiking.