If you are planning your vacation or are already there and do not know where to start, because the offer is
colorful and varied, we advise you to read on to get your taste buds on the right track and to give you a
delicious guide.
Istrian wine routes - fine wines and magical backdrops
“
Life is too short to drink bad wine.”
Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Even one of the biggest, Goethe personally, would greet
Istrian wine routes with a sway, because where the white soil in Central Istria and red soil on the coast merge, only
divine drink can come about.
Wineries and winegrowers can be found on every corner of Istria, but because of the quantity, quality should not be lacking: the Istrians are very "fussy" and exact about that. The
most famous regions in western Istria are the areas around
Rovinj, Pula, Porec & Buje. In the central part of the peninsula you can find the best vineyards around
Buzet and Pazin and on the east coast the area around
Labin, above
Rabac.
The
best-known wines in the Istria region are traditional wines, such as the
Istrian Malvasia: golden yellow synonym for freshness & harmony, the
Momjan Muskat: dessert wine with an unforgettable scent of wild cloves and the ruby red
Teran: princely drop rich in history.
Most of the wineries have been
family-owned for decades, with a proud cross-generational tradition in wine making. In addition, Istrian wines can be found not only in
local family restaurants, but now on the wine lists of many top restaurants around the world. So, let's start with our wine tour:
The first and at the same time the
most famous wine route in Istria covers the
area around Buje in the northwest of the peninsula. It stretches along the west coast of Istria and extends from Buje in the north to Pula in the south. The main meeting places of the wine route are Umag, Brtonigla, Novigrad, Dajla, Nova vas, Groznjan, Savudrija and Buje.
The second wine route refers to
Porec and the surrounding area with
Lovrec and Funtana, while the third wine route runs through the interior, culminating in the medieval Pazin and Buzet.
The fourth wine route extends to
Rovinj in the south with Vodnjan and Valbandon, where even
the most persistent non-romantic becomes weak. Not to forget the winegrowers and wine traders in Labin, located on the east coast of the peninsula.
Since driving a car and drinking wine are not compatible, we advise you to
take a bike tour… or simply book
one of our villas near the “well”. :)
In case you want an
expert to explain the whole “thing” to you, then we advise to book an organized wine tour, individually or in a group. You can expect a pleasant evening, where you can taste all the delicious wines in an
irresistible combination with Croatian specialties.
Written a lot & drank nothing, hence:
Zivjeli!
One of the best in the world - Istrian olive oil
From the wine it is only a small step to the olive oil, so we switch directly from the wine roads to
the olive roads, because wherever the Istrian wine thrives, the groves are not far away, where on
thousands of trees the green olives ripen for a rich harvest.
In addition to the
distinctive taste and intense aroma, the oil is a real
fountain of youth because of its minerals, enzymes and vitamins - ask the ancient Romans. In addition, one of the oldest olive tree in the Mediterranean is located in the Istrian national park “
Brijuni” (definitely worth a trip). With its proud age of
over 1600 years !! each year it continues to give its golden fruits lovingly and continuously as gifts - which is worth admiration and respect alone.
The olive oil of the Croatian peninsula was already
considered the best in the world in Roman times. After a great deal of effort and work, the region has regained this reputation today. The Italian "Olive Oil Bible Flos Olei" has
named Istria the best olive oil region for the fourth time in a row - and you have the opportunity to find out what is behind this story, or even to be there during the harvest and create a
special holiday memory.
In Istria, quality is of the
essence for olive oil and although twenty years ago fewer than a hundred thousand olive trees were rooted here, one and
a half million shape the landscape now - because the soil and climate advantages offer
only the best quality.
Of course, you will be so
enthusiastic about one or the other bottle that you can hardly avoid taking some of the best oils
home with you to revive the holiday memories in your favourite dish. In order to help you with your selection, we will briefly explain the 4 grades here:
Virgin olive oil in general is oil that goes straight from the tree into the bottle. Harvested olives are ground, pressed, spun, filtered and bottled.
- Extra virgin olive oil: first-class oil, created exclusively by mechanical treatment and with a low percentage of free fatty acids
- Extra virgin olive oil direct: also mechanically obtained oil, however it contains a higher percentage of free fatty acids
- Olive oil: mixture of refined and virgin olive oil
- Olive pomace oil: oil obtained from the pomace of the pressed olives
A tip on our part: Last but not least, you can
recognize first-class and excellent oil quality by the price, but this golden and lovingly harvested drop justifies its price, because you can use it to taste and perfume every meal (be it sweet or savoury).
Do not miss the small brown signs that read “
Ceste Maslinova ulja” (olive oil roads) , which will point you on the right course everywhere on the peninsula.
And don't forget to end your tour with a swim on one of the
beautiful beaches, because the Adriatic Sea is always just a stone's throw away from you. :)
Pure pleasure.
Ivana Stanic
20.4.2022
MY ISTRIA GUIDE
