Wine & gastro trip
Who’s up for an adventure in which we explore nine great wineries and two grand wine estates, check their cellars and vineyards, and — most importantly — taste 3 to 4 different wine varieties at each place?
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Slavonia is the eastern region of Croatia, well known for its viticulture areas. We’ll take you to visit some of them: Srijem, Erdut, Baranja and Kutjevo. From each and every one come more than a few premium wines. Made in wineries big and small, those wines bring back home prestigious global awards of Decanter, Mundus Vini, Selections Mondiales des Vins and so on. Will you seize this opportunity to visit their makers, listen to their stories and become enchanted with their flavours, while snacking on traditional Slavonian cold cuts and cheese?
As if that weren’t enough, there are some multi-course fusion menu lunches on the timetable as well.
The oak barrels of The Old Cellar
The view from the Principovac countryside estate enhances the wine tasting experience
Zlatni Lug (The Golden Grove) is a large estate whose owners promote the core values of Slavonia - hospitality, delicious food, premium wines and unspoiled nature
Graševina, the premium white grape variety, is the pride and joy of Slavonia, and has subtle varieties depending on the vineyard microlocation
Food abundance is considered a trademark of every Slavonian home, so that homemade food, wine and all sorts of fruit rakijas, have become synonyms of the region. The food is usually well spiced, mostly with pepper and chilli-peppers. Dishes are mostly based on meat and fish, and are very carefully paired up with wines.
You’ll be checking in to the 4-star hotel in Vinkovci, a family hotel with deep roots in traditional Slavonian hospitality. Upon arrival you’ll be offered a plum rakija as a sign of welcoming and respect; this has been a local tradition for centuries.
The hotel has a pleasant restaurant where you can go for an optional dinner à la carte.
After breakfast, your guide will take you to the easternmost part of Slavonia (and Croatia), to the area of Srijem. This area is well known by its viticulture and has an abundance of vineyards and wine cellars.
You will be visiting the town of Ilok, and its’ wine road in the city centre which brings together 12 wineries. The oldest and most popular one of them is “The Old Cellar”, where you’ll be tasting 3 kinds of premium Ilok wines paired with local specialities.
After the tasting, you’ll head to the countryside estate Principovac settled on a hill with the most beautiful view of Ilok and Srijem. There you’ll have lunch at a luxurious restaurant, with a choice between 3 different 3-course menus, each of which is matched with a specific Ilok wine.
Next stop today will be the winery Papak. It’s located on the southern slopes of mountain Fruška Gora, in the midst of a huge vineyard. This is the easternmost wine growing area in Ilok and the whole of Croatia. Around 70% of the growing area is reserved for graševina, the most important/most popular wine sort in the area. You will be tasting 3 varieties of wine here, along with some bread and cheese.
And just when you thought you’ve tasted more than enough wines for the day, there will be 5 more premium varieties waiting for you at the winery Krešić. This winery is located on the bank of the Danube, Europe’s second longest river, in a very scenic village named Šarengrad. It’s worth a special mention that the winery uses a German-built bunker from World War II as premises for its archive. The hosts will have plenty of stories to tell you!
In the evening you’ll be returning to your hotel.
After a tasty breakfast at the hotel, you’ll travel along the beautiful Slavonian plains to the wine area of Erdut. The green vineyards here are very fertile with delicious grapes, mostly due to Danube weaving through loess soil, and to the amount of sun these parts get (very similar to Dubrovnik).
You will visit the famous boutique winery Antunović, whose name is linked to the century-old tradition of growing grapes. Under female management the winery became one of the best in Croatia, as proven by countless awards; the most prominent one being the Platinum medal for Graševina in 2017 from Decanter competition in London. You will get to taste 4 varieties from the regular line and one of the aged wines.
The journey will continue to a different area, Baranja, or more specifically to Kneževi vinogradi (The Duke’s vineyards). First stop is going to be at the Belje winery. Belje’s vineyards extend over 650 acres, and have a wine road passing right through them. The winery is located in the cellars dug into a hill 5 centuries ago. A professional guide will take you through the cellar’s long halls where the so called “predicate wines” (made from overly ripe grapes) are kept in oak barrels, sorted by their recognizable labels: Selekt, Premium and Goldberg Class. You’ll be tasting 4 varieties of top wines along with cheese and bread snacks.
For lunch we’ll go to Josić restaurant & winery in Zmajevac. You’ll have a 3-course menu tuned to your liking (meat or fish, various styles - grilled, baked etc.) paired with wine varieties produced exclusively at Josić. The predicate wines of this winery have been awarded with many gold medals, and acknowledged for top design of their bottles. On their labels you’ll see pictures of endangered bird species which frequent the nearby marshlands of Nature Park Kopački Rit.
After your time at Josić winery, you’ll be returning to the hotel.
After early breakfast, you’ll head to a small town of Kutjevo, considered the symbol of wine culture and tradition in Croatia. It’s fascinating that the history of the town mentions the first winery being in the year 1232. The geography of the area is very positively inclined towards viticulture - it’s located on the southern slopes of two mountains, Papuk and Krndija, about 200-300m above sea level, and on the same geographical latitude as the world-renowned vineyards of Piemont, Bordeaux and Val du Rhône.
Upon arrival, you’ll visit a private family winery Krauthaker, founded in 1992. Their vineyards are located on the sunny slopes of mountain Krndija, and the family takes pride in using old techniques for land work - they use horses. They are also the only ones producing wine from the grape Zelenac, which makes their wines have a specific fruit aroma and a sense of freshness. You’ll have a chance to taste 3 different wines produced at the winery.
The next fine establishment to visit is the Sontacchi winery, whose history dates back to the year 1900. Sontacchi grow mostly red grapes and ferment with wild yeasts native to their territory. Their most famous product is the red cuveé, a blend of Cabernet Franc and Cabernet Sauvignon which they named Kitokret. Aside from Kitokret, you’ll also get to taste 3 more wine varieties.
For lunch you’ll go to the restaurant Zlatni lug (The Golden Grove), located on a large estate whose owners try to embody and promote the core values of Slavonia - hospitality, delicious food, premium wines and unspoiled nature. Your main course is going to be the favored house specialty -- pork steak stuffed with homemade kulen (spicy flavoured sausage made of minced pork), cheese and maize named Zlatni Lug steak. It will come with a side of vegetable risotto, a salad and a desert.
Last stop for the day before going back to the hotel will be the visit to the oldest known winery of the area, winery Kutjevo. On the tour of their cellars, you’ll be seeing the ones from 1982, 1962 and of the oldest wine cellars in the region whose foundations are based in 1232. Learning about the place, you’ll taste 3 of their types of wine.
After breakfast, it’s time to say goodbye. You’ve learned a lot about the wine-related culture of Slavonia. If you’re up for learning a bit more about the city you have been staying in, take a walk down the pedestrian zone of Vinkovci, and visit the Vučedol Museum. There is plenty of conserved archaeological monuments to see.
We will double-check availability and make reservations for your rooms, restaurants, guides etc.
With reservations confirmed, we will prepare the best offer possible in regard to your arrival date & party size
You will get the offer via e-mail, along with the payment options. Feel free to request further customisations!
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