With the opening ceremony held at the beautiful Hvar Arsenal, accompanied by delicacies and fine Croatian wines, the 6th International Festival Taste the Mediterranean has begun. This year, in addition to a rich programme designed for professionals as well as fans of gastronomy and oenology, seven foreign and six top Croatian chefs are taking part in the festival. From 22 to 25 May, the festival, taking place in the Mediterranean ambience of the town of Hvar, will promote the benefits of the Mediterranean diet which UNESCO has included in the list of world’s intangible cultural heritage.
The town of Hvar and the Hvar Tourist Board, as well as the Croatian National Tourist Board (HTZ), have recognised the importance of the event attended by many foreign journalists. The festival was opened by Hvar mayor Rikardo Novak, together with Petar Razović from Hvar Tourist Board and Ingrid Badurina Danielsson.
“We are delighted that the festival is developing and has been recognised by numerous exceptional partners from the gastronomy segment, as well as the local community and the Ministry of Tourism and the HTZ. The festival promotes the values of Mediterranean culture, bringing together top-quality chefs, winemakers and local food producers, and experts from the field of agriculture, cultural landscapes, fisheries and sustainable tourism,” said Ingrid Badurina Danielsson, director and founder of the festival.
The Mediterranean specialities and Hvar wines from the Tomić and Vujnović wineries were appropriately tasted at the opening ceremony, and Andro Tomić and Juraj Vujnović personally presented their wines to the guests.
Japanese chef Ippei Uemura hosted a culinary show and presented the art of tuna filleting. Sommelier Daniel Čečavac hosted the Dalmatian wine tasting, and the following wines were included: Tomić Beleca 2018, Vujnović Prč 2018, Stina Vugava 2018, Ahearne Wild Skins 2017, Duboković Prije 6009 Godina 2015, Rizman Primus 2015, and South Side Plavac Mali 2014.
The wine workshop will be hosted by the well-known duo from Split, Siniša Koceić and Alen Gulan from Winebox. Spain will be represented by chef Vicente Patino, whose Saiti restaurant boasts a Michelin recommendation, and he will demonstrate the traditional cuisine of Valencia. He will cook an exclusive dinner at the Hvar Divina together with the restaurant’s chef Nataša Vukmirović, and guests will enjoy delicacies and Spanish wines on the terrace.
Hrvoje Zirojević, the Croatian chef of the year according to Gault&Millau, will host in his kitchen Bee Satongun, the best chef in Asia for 2018 according to the 50 Best Restaurants. With a creative menu and an exclusive dinner at the Laganini restaurant, they will demonstrate common features of the contemporary Thai and Mediterranean diet.
The third dinner will be held on the terrace with the most beautiful view on the historic Hvar, at the Kod Kapetana restaurant, where the Italian chef Marcello Trentini will join his two hosts: Tonči Jerković and Antun Matković Car. For the first time, a chef from Albania will come to the festival. Sokol Prenga is a master confectioner, baker and chocolatier, and a great promoter of Albanian cuisine, and his non-profit organisation “Culinary Education Center” focuses on promoting Albanian history, culture and gastronomy in the world. Slovenia is represented by Igor Jagodic, the Slovenian chef of the year according to Gault&Millau, from the Strelec restaurant in Ljubljana, and the wine academician and sommelier Mira Šemić.
Renowned lecturers will speak at the conference “Sustainable Mediterranean Food Systems, Cultural Landscapes and Biodiversity” held at the Hvar Arsenal. It will undoubtedly be interesting, varied and very, very tasty.
More Hvar news can be found in the Lifestyle section.
