Showing posts with label Croatia wine and food. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Croatia wine and food. Show all posts

Friday, July 1, 2016

Možeš Možeš -- The Epic Blue Danube Wine Roadtrip in Croatia!



Back in April I embarked on an epic two-week road trip through Dalmatia in Croatia and Bosnia-Herzegovina with Frank Dietrich, Catherine Granger and Gisele Carig of the Blue Danube Wine team. This post kicks off my blog series that will recount all the extraordinary locations, people, vineyards, wine, food and vistas and adventures from the journey.

Gisele Carig, Frank Dietrich and Catherine Granger of Blue Danube Wine
I would argue that a road trip is the best way to really experience a place. Sure you can travel by train or bus or boat, but to really get off the proverbial beaten track to truly go deep into a place and get into all sorts of adventures and tight spots (literally!) --you need to have a car. All of the best travel experiences I’ve ever had (both good and hair-raising) were with a foreign car in a foreign land.

Tight squeeze in Vrboska on Hvar

Možeš, možeš  -- You Can Do It!
But things can go wrong in a jiffy on a road trip—getting lost is a mainstay of road trips, and getting in and out of tight spaces where cars don’t belong comes with the territory. Our very first day we were blocked in parking lot by other cars until a few helpful locals simply picked up the other car allowing us room to pass.


We learned our first and most important Croatian phrase: Možeš možeš. Možeš ti to (You can do it!) Along with a few Polako, polako’s (slowly, slowly) we were on our way to the first appointment.

Making new friends in the Konzum parking lot in Trogir
Yes, having a car is more trouble. Yes, you will get lost. Yes, finding parking may be impossible. Yes, you may find yourself where no car had gone before—but the rewards are greater too.


For efficiency sake during the trip we all took on specific roles. Frank—leader and key negotiator. Catherine—navigator and relief driver. Gisele—client liaison and schedule keeper. Me? I was more than ballast, I have skills too ya know. I’m designated as the Rakija Queen and gladly step forward to take one for the team whenever the potent schnapps is presented. Trust me in Croatia it’s a very important role.

Rakija Queen at sampling the local offerings.
So fasten your seat belts, and follow along as I file reports for the Blue Danube Wine blog about the trip from Split/Torgir to Dubrovnik, Korcula, Ston, Kastela, Hvar, Skradin, plus Bosnia and Herzegovina and the places in between.



Monday, August 11, 2014

BIG BIBICh BASH - Wines of Croatia



Three years ago this month, I held a Croatian wine tasting at my house with Frank Dietrich of Blue Danube wines, and it was the start of my love affair with Croatain wine and Croatia. See here, here, and here.

This Saturday, August 16th, we are doing it again with the BIG BIBICh BASH--featuring the wines of Alen Bibić.

I traveled to Croatia shortly after the 2011 tasting, and was supremely lucky to visit the Bibich winery in Skradin where I had one of the most phenomenal food and wine pairings of my life. The next day, some guy named Anthony Bourdain showed up for the same pairings and some extended drinking that was featured in an episode of No Reservations. But I like to say I was there first! 

My post about the Bibich Dégustation has become one of the most viewed posts of all on my blog. 

Frank will guide us though twelve BIBICh wines including the Lucia, Bas De Bas, R6 and R5, as well as the new to me P9 Posip. Follow the hashtag #BIBIChBASH for live tweets about each wine.

I’ve raved so much about my favorite BIBICh wines, such as the Lučia and R5, they have become known as “Croatian White Unicorns” by some of my wine friends due to the adoration and mythical status I bestow upon them. But Unicorn is an apt descriptor for these rare, unusual and mythical whites.

Here is a list of what will be poured at the BIG BIBICh BASH -- For more details, you can visit the Blue Danube site here.

Bibich Sparkling Rosé
Bibich Ambra
Bibich Bas de Bas Blanc
Bibich Bas de Bas Rouge
Bibich Debit
Bibich G6 Grenache
Bibich Lučica
Bibich P9 Pošip
Bibich R5 Riserva
Bibich R6 Riserva
Bibich Sangreal Merlot
Bibich Sangreal Shiraz

Okay, so no Teran above, but you can’t have everything!

Over the last three years I’ve been back to Croatia several times, and experienced an astounding array of food and wine. It is truly one of the best emerging destinations for wine travelers. If you plan to visit Croatia I offer you the following tips here

RELATED POSTS:
Spending Two Perfect Days in Zagreb
Best Places to Eat, Drink and Stay in Istria

Croatia Series:
Croatia Series Preview: Zivili!
Croatia Part 1: Bibich Dégustation
Croatia Part 2: The Splendors of Split
Croatia Part 3: Šibenik Caressed by the Sea
Croatia Part 4: Zadar, The Perfect Date
Croatia Part 5: Pilgrimage to Pag: Land of Paški Sir
Croatia Part 6: Istria--Truffles, Olive Oil, Prosciutto & Wine!
Croatia Part 7: A Taste of Zagreb

OTHER CROATIA POSTS
The Wines of Croatia: A Preview Tasting
Croatian Wines Making Waves
Country of Good Vines: Countdown to Wines of Croatia
I Can Almost Taste It! Croatian Wine is Near
Wines of Croatia Tasting: The Recap
Ajvar Smackdown
Croatia: Memories Lost and Found
Eli's Caffé in Zagreb--Wake Up and Smell the Coffee
Maraschino - Wrapped in Tradition

LinkWithin

Related Posts Plugin for WordPress, Blogger...