POTOMJE, CROATIA (REUTERS) - A Croatian red wine will be among wines served at events on Inauguration Day this week in Washington, the winery that produced it says, hoping that the moment in the presidential spotlight will be a boon to the country's small wine industry.

The wine, which sells for about US$60-70 (S$80-93) per bottle in the United States, is from the Benmosche Family Winery, which produces some 4,000 to 5,000 bottles of Zinfandel and Dingac a year.

"We first heard about it when the local media broke the news and then we got information from our clients in the United States that the wine got where it got," Mr Boris Mrgudic, director of the Benmosche Family Winery, told Reuters.

He did not have any details about which particular lunch or dinner the wine would be served at during Wednesday's (Jan 20) Inauguration Day, when Democrat Joe Biden will be sworn in as president.

The Mrgudic family has been involved in wine production for 12 generations and went into business with late US insurance executive Robert Benmosche, a great wine lover, after meeting him in the early 2000s.

The winery is located on the hilly slopes of the Peljesac peninsula near the popular tourist destination of Dubrovnik.

"This news will certainly contribute to promotion of the Croatian wines which is very important, as Croatia is a small wine producer and still not very competitive on the global markets," Mr Mrgudic said.