Autumn in Europe is synonymous with harvest festivals and gastronomy, and the occasions spread across the continent.
Choose a country and there will be some sort of food or wine festival from September to November, many of which date back many years.
Although there are no restrictions on the crops that are harvested at this time of year, some crops deserve special attention.
Truffles, grown in Italy, Spain, France and Croatia, are one of the most sumptuous tactics for fall eating. You will find small white truffle occasions in Istria, Croatia and black truffle occasions in France and Spain, but none compare. on a scale to that of Alba in Italy.
The Alba White Truffle Festival is a world-renowned event that lasts two months, from October to December last year. Started with a donkey race and offering tastings, food and wine pairings and cooking demonstrations, this is a bucket list item.
Olives are usually harvested in October and November in southern Europe, where the climate is warmer and they ripen more quickly. In France, this is done more between November and January.
Visit any olive grower in the city and you’re sure to find a place that will help you select and press the olives, and then flavor the new oil. Tapenades, olive-based beauty products and, of course, the olives themselves are also the protagonists of these events, accompanied by parades, concerts and other animations.
Many cities celebrate the season with general food festivals, such as Vienna’s Erntedankfest, which feasts on seasonal foods returning to markets, adding mountain cheeses, pumpkin recipes, and brewed fermented juices.
In northern Europe, seafood is on the autumn food circuit, with herring festivals in Finland, oyster festivals in England and Ireland, and shrimp festivals in France.
And for more exclusive events, the following specialist festivals attract thousands of visitors each year and celebrate: onions in Weimar, Germany; rice in Arles, France; sausages in Budapest, Hungary; chocolate in Perugia, Italy; all things seafood in O Grove, Spain; black foods in Tallinn, Estonia; coffee in Amsterdam, Netherlands; peppers in Espelette, France; apples in Dobele, Latvia; saffron in Toledo, Spain; and honey in Corsica, to name a few.
Another wonderful way to harvest near you is to locate a harvesting farm near you.
These farms are outdoors from big cities, where other people like to escape to the countryside for the day and bring home bags of apples, pumpkins, and anything else they might have in the past.
Many farms specialize in a few crops, but larger ones may offer dozens at other times of the year.
From mid-summer to late fall, depending on the region and the seasonal climate, the harvest takes place throughout the continent.
Perhaps the most famous beer festival in the world is Germany’s unprecedented beer festival, Oktoberfest (which takes place in September, not October). For a whole month, the country is all about breweries and tents popping up in each and every city. , which serves not only wonderful beers but also delicious local snacks to enjoy it all. If you don’t wear the classic dress to those events, you may not look like you belong.
But don’t forget Germany for the wine either. You might be surprised at how many wineries this country has, and because they are less touristy, they are less expensive to stop over than the more popular French or Italian alternatives.
The Rhine Valley is dotted with vineyards and the town of Boppard is a highlight at this time of year, with concerts and fireworks to mark the grape harvest festival.
Portugal, a country underestimated for its wine culture, has its Douro Valley, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the oldest wine regions in the world, cultivated since 1756.
In September and October, volunteers are invited to help select and weigh grapes destined for the country’s famous port.
In Spain, La Rioja hosts a festival that begins on September 21 and lasts for more than 900 years. For a week, locals and tourists stomp grapes to the rhythm of live bands, bullfights and fireworks.
Made in the Spanish region of Andalusia, Sherry is celebrated in September for 3 weeks with flamenco, parades, exhibitions, concerts, bullfights and, of course, tapas and sherry.
France is probably the country best known for wine festivals, which is no surprise at the vast territory in which it has to grow its famous grapes. Among the dozens of celebrations that take place among the thousands of wineries offered by this wine-growing power, some stand out.
Saint-Émilion, a World Heritage Site, is one of the most popular places for grape harvesting, just under an hour’s drive from the wine mecca of Bordeaux. The vines here were originally planted by the Romans, but it was the priests who made them successful.
Every September, Heritage Night is celebrated when members of the Jurade, the winegrowers’ corporation, dressed in red and white capes, parade through the village and climb the church’s bell tower to proclaim the date of this year’s harvest.
In the Marne Valley, where Champagne is famous, the medieval town of Château-Thierry kicks off the special sparkling wine-making procedure with workshops, cellar tours and tastings at more than 30 local wine institutions with pairings. In fact, World Champagne Day is celebrated on the fourth Friday in October, a wonderful time to be in the region.
Even Paris organizes a grape harvest festival, held every October in Montmartre, where a small winery is still located in the center of the city today.
The Italian wine culture also does not wish for any advent. The Festa dell’Uva in Impruneta, a town in the center of the “Chianti Classico” region dating back to 1926, is one of the most popular wine events. Parades of floats, dancers and exhibitions are accompanied by numerous wines and local delicacies.
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