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Tag: vineyard

  • Wine-growing tourism in Romania

    Wine-growing tourism in Romania

    Romania has a very generous offer of vast vineyards
    and beautiful wine cellars, fascinating stories of genuine treasures that await the wine
    lovers. Moreover, these wine cellars can be visited as part of several special
    programs which include walks around the vineyards, detailed info on the
    wine-making process and, more important than all that, wine tasting sessions.


    This week’s edition of Traveler’s Guide
    spins the yarn of a different experience, that of the legends told till late at
    night, in a picturesque setting.


    Alina Iancu is the founder of Romania’s Wine
    Cellars project. Alina is also a promoter of the local wines and of the
    wine-growing tourism. Alina told us the number accommodation units at the wine cellars
    but also in the surrounding areas has been on the rise, as of late.


    From this
    particular viewpoint, as against the last two, maybe three years, we fare much
    better. We have only one association, which is active, the Dealu Mare Wine
    Cellars Association. There are around 15 wine cellars in the association and several
    times a year they organize the Open Gates Day. Which means that a couple of wine
    cellars can be visited the same day with no previous appointment. There are a great
    many wine cellars, from the Dealu Mare vineyard, Dragasani or even from Transylvania, that began to stage festive events, be they live
    concerts at the wine cellar, or the Wine Cellar Day, celebrated at a certain
    moment in time, or the Grape Harvest Day. And then, when you know there are several
    wine cellars in a region, you’re aware you need to be able to plan your weekend.
    To this wine cellar you go for the grape harvest, while to that one, you go to
    enjoy the vineyard. There are a couple of vineyards that have started to associate
    with other local producers, be they cheesemakers or producers of meat specialties.
    And then, apart from a wine-growing experience, you can also have a culinary
    experience. To that end, we’ve got much more work to do, yet the local
    producers in certain areas have begun to put their produce together and present
    them to the people visiting their households.


    While visiting a wine cellar, tourists are
    initiated in the art and technique of wine tasting and can also listen to its tale.
    When their visit is about to end, the guests of the wine cellar can have a
    stopover at the souvenir shop, available to them with souvenirs in a liquid
    state. The initiator of Romania’s Wine Cellars project, Alina Iancu, told us
    wine growing tourism goes perfectly with other forms of tourism.


    Being welcomed at the wine cellar also
    means a brief presentation of the technological process, a sight-seeing tour where
    you are shown the hall where the grapes a reprocessed, the maturation area with
    the barrels, which is the strongest point of attraction, then the wine tasting
    session begins. As a rule, five sorts of wine are tasted, and some of them can
    also go with other produce. A visit to a wine cellar lasts for about one hour
    and a half. However, winegrowing tourism also goes with active tourism. More often
    than not, cycling or running activities are organized. That happens at national
    level as in the long run, you can enjoy the scenery, while in the end, when you
    reach your destination, you can also enjoy a glass of wine. Romania is
    well-known for its white as well as for its red wines, yet that has been gaining
    ground, quality-wise, as in recent years a great many new wine cellars have cropped
    up and in Romania, not only have they improved their quality, but also, the
    wine cellars already put themselves on the market with quality wines. Emphasis
    is laid, by all means, on the local sorts, on the indigenous sports, while
    quality is sensibly improving.


    Apart from the wine
    tasting sessions at the wine cellars, tourists can also enjoy taking part in
    events staged in the big cities across Romania, Alina Iancu also said. For example,
    the second edition of the Revino Gourmet Salon is held in Bucharest, over October
    21 and 23rd.

    Alina
    Iancu:


    We bring over wine makers, producers of craft beer, but also cheese makers
    and producers of meat specialties. So, you go the whole hog when you have this
    gastronomic experience, you can make the most of it for a couple of days running,
    what with the fact that it is smack bang in the middle of the capital city. Such
    events are staged in the big cities across the country, each year. It is a
    start, in a bid to have wine sorts go with the local produce, while this event is
    not only for the visiting public. Local producers need to met other local
    producers, because that is the only way we can enhance the value of the
    produce, and that of the place. Whenever we introduce a wine sort and point to
    a sort of local cheese that best goes with it, the story is a much more complex
    wine. In the build-up to all that, there are several factors, people and
    places, while the taste is a much stronger one, when more products are being laid
    out, all of them hailing from the same region.


    There are a great many
    tourists who come to the wine cellars. However, quite a few of them travel to Romania
    for business purposes. Such people would like to have a special experience at the
    weekend.


    There
    are very few tourists who come for the wine-growing part alone. However, in such
    vineyards as the ones in Dealul Mare, Drăgășani or even
    in Transylvania, very many foreign tourists dedicate their weekends to such
    visits and it goes without saying they’re impressed with what they see as,
    first of all, they ‘re not aware Romania is a great producer of wines, and secondly,
    they are impressed with the quality of the wine. Besides, wine-growing tourism
    can be done all year round. Any time of the year has its own flavor, yet the
    most sought-after are the months of May all through to October, when nature and
    the temperature readings allow you to enjoy other experiences than the
    wine-tasting one. What we need to know, though, is that early booking in needed
    and usually we take groups of visitors made of at least six people.


    If you access the Crame Romania platform, you can get info on
    the wine cellars, the particular places where they are located, as well as info
    on the indigenous sorts and, in general, on how a wine sort can be tasted. The founder
    of Romania’s Wine Cellars project, Alina Iancu, year after year, invites tourists
    to get acquainted with Romania’s wines and wine cellars.


    It’s been ten years since
    we promote wine-growing tourism. We also need the public to be more and more interested,
    as the experience is unique and the local producers have also accommodation
    places on offer, as well as special dedicated rooms and special personnel, more
    and more dedicated. You should be anxious to know, as soon as you reach Romania,
    according to the area you may find ourselves in, you should be anxious enough to ask whether
    there are wine cellars nearby, since the places you’re about to visit and the
    wines you’re about to taste, all that is well worth the while !


    We have already extended our invitation! Next
    week’s edition takes you to Mures, the Romanian county with the greatest number
    of castles and mansions.

  • The Wine Road in Prahova

    The Wine Road in Prahova

    We spoke to Silvia Palasca, head of communication with the Dealu Mare Association, gathering together wine makers from a major wine region of Romania. She spoke to us about the wine cellars in the county of Prahova. We will be finding out about the local varieties, how a visit to a wine cellar occurs, and what the calendar of events for tourists is. They have an opportunity to be initiated into the art and technique of tasting wines, and to listen to the stories of the wines. At the end of the visit, the guests can stop over at the presentation store, where they can get souvenir bottles. Here is Silvia Palasca:


    “Wine tourism, after mountain tourism, is one of the key points in tourism in Prahova Country, but also in Buzau County, because the Dealu Mare wine region stretches over those two counties. Unfortunately, the wine cellars here are less known as tourist destinations, both for locals, and for foreigners, but we have been changing that for a while now. We recommend that people come here by booking with a tourist agency, or through the events that our Dealu Mare Association organize monthly. We organize the Open Bottle Week, which anyone can attend, but they have to arrange their own transportation. You can also attend every year the Escape to Dealu Mare event, which this year is between October 22 and 23. We offer transportation from Bucharest, by bus, so that people can enjoy the wine experience without thinking of driving.”




    Silvia Palasca also told us about what a visit to the cellars consists of:


    “At every cellar, we usually start with a presentation that includes a history of the cellar or vineyard, the history of the place, we visit the production and storage spaces, where the vats are, after which we go to the tasting places. Each vineyard usually offers four or five kinds of wine produced right there. For the tasting we also have limited edition or special wines, so that people can get to know more than they can usually get in stores or restaurants. The Dealu Mare wine area is famous for red wines. We can find many wines from the famous lines of Feteasca Neagra, Cabernet Sauvignon, or Merlot, but recently we had a lot of success with the white varieties, such as the Chardonnay Baricat, Feteasca Alba, or Tamaioasa Romaneasca, ifyou prefer a more high flavor wine.”




    Many tourists prefer a more diversified experience, which means combining wine tourism with other kinds of tourism. We were told about it by head of communications for the Dealu Mare Association, Silvia Palasca:


    “In Dealu Mare you have quite a few options for accommodation. Not necessarily agro-tourism B&Bs, but rather more elegant ones, boutique style. However, tourists who want the agro-tourism experience may also visit local producers of honey or cheeses. Tours can be organized for people to get to know local traditions, which are still kept alive by a few small producers. For instance, we have partnerships with producers of cheeses, of lavender, of honey, and we also have a horse riding center. Also, Dealu Mare is very popular with bicycle tourists. We have partnerships with several providers of such services. Cyclists can go on tour by bicycle, being better able to know the vineyards, and to have the nature experience.”




    Usually, vineyards are the star destinations for autumn. What happens, however, if were unable to visit in autumn, but have the winter open? Silvia Palasca told us about visiting the wine cellars in winter:


    “We also hold the Open Bottle Saturday event in winter too. In winter we aim to create that warm atmosphere around the fireplace. Some cellars also offer other ways of spending free time, so that visits there can be had in any season. We can find solutions and things to do in each season, so that the cellars are open at all times of the year. This autumn the cellars were closed, because it was harvest time, and it was very busy, and most places didnt have time for tourists. However, with October we finish the harvest, and open for tourism. In the previous editions of the Escape to Dealu Mare event we had foreign tourists who had previously visited Napa Valley, or Tuscany. They said that here they had a similar experience, but were a bit disappointed by the infrastructure in the county. So we need more investments in local infrastructure, so that we can provide an international level experience. But in terms of the vineyards, the quality of the wine, and the quality of information, they were very pleased.”




    Wine tourism is on the rise in Romania, says Silvia Palasca:


    “At the first edition of the Escape to Dealu Mare event we had 300 people, and last year 500, but this year we will surely have more. Some vineyards have already made investments in accommodation, we can see all over the area new B&Bs and restaurants cropping up. This type of tourism is growing, and we can see much more interest from young people, who want more novel experiences. We have five circuits, with 15 vineyards, so that, even if you have been here before, you can surely find something new and interesting this year. If this time of the year is not available to travel, as we said, we are here year long, solutions are there to be found for visiting the cellars, getting to know wine experts in person, and meeting the people behind the wine, getting to know their stories, and getting to know us right here at our home.”




    Over the last few years, wine makers have also paired up with local food producers, for a complete dining experience with traditional Romanian dishes.

  • Romanian inter-war politics and its heritage

    Romanian inter-war politics and its heritage



    The Florica estate is located around 100 kilometers north-west
    of Bucharest. It is one of the best-known such estates across the country.
    Proof of that stands the personality of those who created the estate and lived
    there afterwards. We’re speaking about the Bratianu family. It is a most
    distinguished family, which for two generations had been actively taking part
    in the making of modern Romania. Ion C. Brătianu and his
    brother, Dumitru, were members of the generation of the 1848 Revolution, also
    contributing to Moldavia’s Union with Wallachia in 1859. Their sons, Ion I. C. Bratianu,
    Dinu Bratianu and Vintila Bratianu, were leading representatives of the 1918
    generation, which among other things, had an important contribution to the
    emergence of Greater Romania.


    The
    origin of the Florica estate has a story behind it. Historian Narcis-Dorin Ion documented that story. The
    foundation of the estate was laid by Dinca Bratianu, the father of the future
    great politician Ion
    I.C Bratianu. Ion I.C Bratianu inherited the Florica and Samburesti estates. Back in the day
    Ion I.C Bratianu also bought the adjoining vineyard, known as Floreasca. The
    vineyard would be Ion I. C Bratianu’s concern until he died, it was the vineyard he would
    tend to and exploit.

    Historian Narcis Dorin Ion:


    Ion C.
    Brătianu would build a first house in Florica in 1858, and here is how his
    nephew, the poet Ion Pillat, reminisced about it, in 1943:’ on the old cellar
    and wine-cellar of the Brancoveanu vineyard, later the property of Dinca Bratianu, his son, Ion C Bratianu,
    would build a simple, two-storey winegrower’s house, which also had an open
    terrace, back then. The gazebo remained in
    a primitive state until the old man’s death. That house in Florica, an old one,
    where I also spent part of my childhood, there was something quiet and
    traditional about it, something that never vanished form my soul.’


    Initially,
    the house was a modest lodging placed in the middle of the vineyard. From a
    three-room house and a wine cellar, in time, Ion I.C. Bratianu built a storied
    mansion and an open terrace. In August 1865, the house in Florica had ten
    rooms, but Bratianu was well aware of the fact that the lodgings still failed
    to provide the amenities he would have liked for his family, which had many
    children, all of them living in Bucharest. In 1877 the Florica railway station
    was inaugurated, so travelling form the capital city Bucharest became a lot
    easier.


    Historian Narcis-Dorin Ion describes the house that
    was substantially refurbished by Pia and her husband, Ion I. C. Bratianu:


    In a letter he sent to his wife,
    Pia, in 1871, Bratianu describes the home in Florica as follows: ‘then I calmed
    down and I got myself seated in the smaller parlor. The room seemed big to me.
    From the little parlor, when I look at the great parlor, I felt as if I were
    somewhere in the palaces in Germany which, being deserted, seemed to me the
    most spacious I had ever seen.’.


    Whenever
    he had his short holidays in Florica, Bratianu liked to be there all by
    himself, with his thoughts and with the passion he had for the vineyard and the animals. In 1869, Bratianu confessed to his wife about what that place meant
    for him, ‘it is the sheer sweetness of a home, since it is only here
    that I feel I am at home, with us. In Bucharest, despite all the amenities we
    have there, I feel like I am in a high-standard hotel, but nothing more than
    that.’


    As
    long as he was still alive, the house had an austere style, imposed by his
    simple taste. Towards the end of his life, his son, Ionel, found it really hard
    to persuade him to make some changes, since Ionel was so passionate about
    constructions.

    Narcis-Dorin Ion:


    The great changes would occur in 1905-1912 and 1924-1925,
    following architect Petre Antonescu’s plans. To this day, thanks to their
    lavish interior decoration, the bookcases can still impress visitors. The early
    days of the library in Florica are also linked to Ion I. C Bratianu, the one
    who had the first bookcase built on the premises. The first books in the
    library were purchased by Bratianu, from Paris. It was also the old man who
    compiled the first catalogue of that rich library, which proudly included
    bibliophile copies coming from the libraries of his friends in politics, C.
    A. Rosetti, Cezar Bolliac, Alexandru Papiu-Ilarian, as well as his brother, Dumitru
    Brătianu.


    Ion
    C. Brătianu also had a park built, which he names Semiramis’ Gardens, since the
    planting of trees was also one of his hobbies. Apart from the house, the
    vineyard and the park, on the estate, Ion C Bratianu had also set up a farm and
    had a church built there. It was in the church that he was buried,
    alongside his first child, a girl, Florica, who died at the tender age of 3. Four
    of Bratianu’s eight children got married on the Bratianu estate. They were
    Sabina, Maria, Vintila and Tatiana. The place
    was visited by many personalities of that time, among them King Carol I, his
    wife Elisabeth and prince heir, the future King Ferdinand I.

    Historian Narcis-Dorin
    Ion:


    Quite telling for the modesty in which the late 19th
    century’s most prominent politician lived are his and his wife’s room, kept in
    mint condition, also as a result of the mansion’s thoroughgoing refurbishment
    and extension works initiated by Ionel Bratianu. For the family’s elder son, so
    passionate about the study of history, those rooms already had a historic
    value, being presented to the high-brow guests of the mansion as some sort of
    family museum, something the contemporaries held in high esteem. ‘Daddy’s room
    had remained intact as a historical monument, in the cupboard the clothes he
    wore for the last time had been neatly arranged, as well as his Junker’s
    uniform and ma’s engagement dress. His bathroom, simple as it was, had remained
    intact. Ionel’s cult for daddy had been so very uncompromising’, recalled the
    daughter, Sabina Cantacuzino.


    To this day, Florica estate has remained a Romanian heritage element in its own right. It is a tourist asset, also facilitating a trip down the
    memory lane.

    (Translation by Eugen Nasta)


  • Vineyard Tourism in Romania

    Vineyard Tourism in Romania

    If you are a wine lover, and want to visit Romanian wine cellars, but dont know what that entails, this edition will give you a head start. In addition, we will find out about outstanding vineyards, get to know the people behind the vine, and we will find out about events where good traditional music and food are accompanied by internationally praised wines.



    Alina Iancu, founder of two web portals dedicated to wines, Crameromania.ro and Revino.ro, told us about the many reasons why we should choose vineyard tourism in Romania:

    “The first reason would be the local grape varieties, and the surroundings of vineyards, because there are so many of them. We are talking first and foremost about Transylvania, which is well worth discovering. We should be blending wine tourism into any other form of tourism in the country. If you have fair weather, then we can have tours of the premises. Then, we introduce you to the process of wine making, starting with the vine itself. The we have the tasting. You can choose from among a number of packages, which are 45 minutes to an hour, followed by a moment of socialization. Tourists can blend their own wines, and even design their own label. There are vineyards that host both tourist groups or company outings, where you can customize your wine, and even be able to reserve your own barrel of wine.”



    There are some vineyards that have tennis courts, bicycles to rent, and bike trails between the rows. At the same time, more and more companies hold team building sessions there. The vineyards offer the spaces and the activities. In the end, though, a vineyard is about enjoying the wines, in addition to the strolls in the open air. Alina Iancu has a few recommendations:

    “Lets go to two vineyards close to Bucharest. 100 km away we have the Dealu Mare vineyard, very well organized for tourism, with good staff and with a great deal of natural beauty. Then we recommend the Dragasani Vineyard, a smaller, family owned business, where tourists are hosted by the owners. It is beautiful, and has great wines, with an emphasis on local varieties. We have groups of 15 to 20 people, many of them foreign tourists. I recall one case, someone transiting through Bucharest, who wanted me to drive them to the vineyards. I think we are quite impressive. We have a vineyard map, so that I managed to provide a pretty good presentation of the general image, in addition to the visits. Compared to other countries, we have a fair and complex presentation of wine makers. There are countries where tourists go on 30 to 40 minute tastings, without visiting the vineyard proper. They can only imagine what goes on there. In Romania, presentation is complex, the tourists are quite impressed by the domestic varieties, and those are the ones we take most pride in.”



    On an average, a wine tasting costs between 50 and 100 lei, which is 10 to 20 Euro, depending on the place, but the price may vary depending on the event. Duration is between 45 and 90 minutes. For instance, in southern Romania, at a vineyard with a 300 year old history, tied to the fate of a princely family, a tasting of 5 wines and a specialty menu, a tasting costs 210 lei, almost 50 Euro.


    Here is Alina Iancu once again:

    “Right now there are several projects, such as crameromania.ro, which introduce the vineyards, identifying the wine cellars that accommodate tourists, with contact links for each of them. You can also schedule a private visit. Our projects are in both Romanian and English, so that tourists will have no trouble understanding the information, because right now you can find online plenty of info on Romania and its domestic varieties. Lots of more accommodation has been created recently, but the pandemic has brought with it a lot of restrictions. Certain vineyards have ceased these activities altogether, but they are sure to start once again. Right now all visits are by appointment, and there are certain restrictions in terms of tastings and meals.”



    Alina Iancu told us that, in addition to promoting Romanian varieties, these activities include promotion of other products too, such as cheeses and meat preparations made locally.