June 5, 2020 – The Osijek-Baranja County Tourist Board and Osijek-Baranja County are organizing a wine month titled “Open Cellar Days” from June 12 to July 11.
In principle, it is 4 vineyards and 4 weekends of wine hedonism, reports HRTurizam.
Thus, visitors will be able to enjoy the open cellars of the most famous winemakers from the area of Slavonia and Baranja, which will be open from 10 am to 7 pm. In each vineyard, there will be an educational program titled “Little School of Wine”, where visitors who pre-register will be able to learn about wines, and there will be concerts, exhibitions and poetry readings.
Ivana Jurić, director of the Osijek-Baranja County Tourist Board, pointed out that this is the first major event since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, and due to the epidemiological measures in force, the Open Cellar Days will be dispersed according to the principle “4 vineyards, 4 weekends” to prevent all wine lovers from gathering at the same time at the same place.
“About ten days ago, we came up with a formula to make an event without a large concentration of people in one place, so we are doing a dispersed event Open Cellar Days of Osijek-Baranja County, which is held in accordance with the National Civil Protection Headquarters. The event is held in our four vineyards – Baranja, Feričanac, Erdut and Đakovo vineyards, while the finale will be held in Osijek, with the Evening of Wine and Art, one of the largest wine events in Osijek-Baranja County.
With open cellars, visitors will be able to learn something new about wine through organized ‘Small Wine Schools’ in each vineyard, enjoy concerts, poetry readings and guided walks through the vineyards. “We believe that enjoying wine, wine cellars and vineyards is the best social remedy after a period of restrictive measures,” concluded Jurić.
Tatjana Roth, Head of the Administrative Department for Tourism, Culture and Sports, emphasized the importance of wine as a tourist product of Osijek-Baranja County. “Food and wine are closely linked to the identity and promotion of the destination, and the rich wine-growing area has a significant impact on attracting tourists to our county. Throughout the Osijek-Baranja County Wine Month, visitors will have the opportunity to visit our four vineyards and enjoy the beautiful products produced by our hardworking winemakers who once again showed their willingness to join the event, open cellars, and generously welcome guests to present their wines.”
The Open Cellar Days begin with the vineyards of Baranja, from June 12 to 14. The next weekend (Saturday, June 20) is reserved for the Feričanci vineyards, and the weekend after that, June 27 and 28, is reserved for the Erdut vineyards to celebrate International Danube Day on June 29. The Đakovo vineyards are on offer from July 3-4. Wine month ends on July 11 with the Evening of Wine and Art in Osijek, one of the most popular events in Osijek.
Matej Perkušić, director of the Baranja Tourist Board, pointed out that Baranja, as the flagship of continental tourism, will offer everything that visitors expect from this type of event – quality wines, great food and a beautiful natural environment. “Open Cellar Days give us hope, after these difficult times caused by the virus, to offer quality content to many tourists who are already slowly arriving in our area to relax and enjoy.”
There will also be a wine safari, guided walks through vineyards and wine cellars with wine tasting, and nature lovers will be able to enjoy cycling, triathlon and hiking.
The visit to the Đakovo vineyards is planned at the time of the popular Đakovački vezovi, while the visit to the Erdut vineyards is planned to mark the International Danube Day on June 29.
Marija Burek, director of the Đakovo Tourist Board, pointed out the contribution of additional program content to this year’s Đakovački vezovi. “The 54th Đakovački vezovi is held from Jule 3 to 5, and the Open Cellar Days of Osijek-Baranja County is a great opportunity to supplement the program content of this well-known event, which this year, due to coronavirus, will be held on a smaller scale than in previous years. As part of the event, wine cellars will be opened on the wine-tourist road “Zlatarevac” Trnava and the wine-tourist road Mandićevac.”
In the end, we should certainly praise the synergy and the completed quality tourist product in four destinations. So far, Slavonia is not too recognized or branded as a wine region, although it certainly is. In fact, in Slavonia, there are top and famous wineries such as Ilok cellars, Belje, Erdut vineyards, Feravino, Kutjevo, Daruvar winery, as well as many other famous top winemakers such as Josic, Kalazic, Krauthaker, Galic, Enjingi, Antunovic Turk , Papak and many others.
It is important to point out that the visual of the event is a continuation of the #HeadOnEast brand, premiered at the Days of Croatian Tourism.
Such events are more than ideal as a motive for arrivals as well as branding Slavonia as a top wine region.
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