Demir Kapija

The name Demir Kapija means “Iron Gate” in Turkish and refers to the narrow canyon carved by the Vardar River as it flows south near the town of Demir Kapija. Until this point, the river moves through a broad valley with rolling hills and plains, but here it suddenly squeezes between two rock walls, forming a narrow passage that once served as the gateway to the Balkans. An ancient human settlement existed in this location as early as the Neolithic period, and a fortress guarding the crossing was already established 3,000 years ago.

In the Middle Ages, a city fortress called Prosek stood on a hill near the river and even served as the capital of an independent Slavic entity for a brief period at the end of the 12th century. Some suggest that the city was once fortified with towers, which inspired the construction of a medieval-style tower at the Popova Kula winery that serves as the restaurant and guesthouse of the winery, located on the hill overlooking Prosek.

After the First Balkan War (1912), the territories of North Macedonia were annexed to Serbia and later became part of Yugoslavia. The Vardar Valley region is highly suited for viticulture, which led Yugoslav King Alexander I to establish a summer house and winery here, now a tourist attraction known as Villa Maria. Today, the town is home to Macedonia’s only wine museum, which showcases the 6,000-year history of winemaking in the region and even claims—much to the dismay of the Georgians—that the domestication of the vine and the origins of winemaking began in Macedonia in prehistoric times.