Two days of Istria: a tavern, an oil mill and a winemaker in the same circle
How to connect a tavern, an oil mill and a winemaker in one weekend, without spending half a day behind the wheel or arriving at the tasting hungry.
The mistake is made on Sunday morning, when you realize you've been running from point to point for two days and haven't eaten a single proper lunch. Istria is small — there are barely 50 kilometers from Poreč to Buzet — but the interior is a tangle of narrow, winding roads where the average rarely exceeds 45 km/h. That's why the circuit through taverns, oil mills and wineries is not a matter of distance butorder. If you miss the rhythm, oil tasting falls on an empty stomach, and lunch on an already tired palate.
Our measure of the road: two days, two main meals in a tavern, two oil tastings and three winemakers — no race. The key is to visit the oil mill before noon, while the palate is fresh, the tavern around two, and the winemaker late in the afternoon, when you are full and someone else is driving.
First day: north and hills
Go from the coast tohills around Motovun and Grožnjan. Reserve a morning for the oil mill — in the area around Buje and Vižinada there are several family businesses that work by appointment. He is looking for monovarietyBuzeorIstrian whites, tasting from a cobalt-colored glass that hides the greenness of the oil. What you're looking for is a cutting bitterness and a burning sensation in the throat at the end of the sip; if it is not there, the oil is old. We explained how to read the label and why the acidity must be below 0.3%a guide to extra virgin oil.
For lunch, go down to a tavern in the Mirna valley or around Livada. Truffles are weaker in August than in autumn, but the local fuji with venison and manestra keep the level all year round. Ordera carafe of domestic Malvasiawith lunch - one, no more, because the winemaker follows. In the afternoon, leave for a producer in the Momjana area: there, Malvasia gets its mineral sharpness from the marly soil. We described the difference between the fresh and the macerated version in the text of Fristrian Malvasia.
Our measure of the road: two days, two main meals in a tavern, two oil tastings and three winemakers — no race.
Second day: interior and return
The second morning belongs to red. The zone around Buzet and the Raše valley bearsdriven out— a thin-skinned, high-acid, iron-note variety that smells of blood and wild berries. Visit the winemaker before noon while the palate is fresh; teran does not forgive afternoon fatigue. Then another oil mill, this time monovarietyRossignolaor blend — comparing two oil mills in two days teaches the palate more than ten articles.
Lunch on the second day should be closer to the starting point, so that you don't have to drive for a long time afterwards. Taverns around Grožnjan or Oprtlje serve ombolo, home-made prosciutto cured in a barrel and goat's cheese. With that, a glass of taran, then slowly back. If you are planning a wider circuit of the Adriatic, this Istrian segment naturally continues onhighway from Rijeka down.
Rule of thumb:do not plan more than three stops per day. Istria punishes greed — every place is worth it because of the conversation with the host, and that is not accelerating.
Questions & answers
short and to the point- How many days are needed for the gastronomic tour of Istria?
- Two days are enough for two oil mills, two taverns and three winemakers without haste. A total of about 130 km of inland driving.
- When to visit an oil mill in Istria?
- Before noon, between 10 a.m. and 12 p.m., while the palate is fresh and before the main meal. Tasting oil on a full stomach loses its meaning.
- What wine is drunk with lunch in an Istrian tavern?
- With white fish and Istrian fudge, with wild game and Teran meat. Order a carafe if you don't have a wine tasting afterwards.
