What #winelover can resist amazing castles and good wine? When the opportunity came to
visit Romanian wine country Spaswinefood decided to go. You might ask, “why”?
Well, Romania is one of the oldest viticultural regions in the world. It's long tradition of wine making, dates back 4000 years. Like many Eastern
European countries that tradition was stifled under communist occupation. Since
the revolution however, Romania has become an emerging star in the wine world. Our first day in Southern Romanian wine country included Peles Castle, Rhein Azuga, Bran Castle and Dambovicioara. What is a Romanian wine adventure without castles?
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| Land of Castles & Wine, Romania © Spaswinefood |
Castles and Wine
After a restful weekend at Bucharest’s Diesel Hotel we headed to the mountains, stopping first at Peles Castle.
Peles Castle
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| Peles Castle, Sinai, Prohova County © Spaswinefood |
Peles Castle is located at the base of the Bucegi Mountains in Sinai, Prohova County. Its construction was commissioned by King Carol 1 in 1873, with completion in 1883. Peles Castle served as the summer resident for the Royal family until 1947. The stunning castle is considered by some, to be one of the most beautiful castles in Europe.
Rhein Azuga
After touring the grounds at Peles Castle we next stopped at Rhein Azuga for a Sparkling wine tasting and lunch. The Rhein Azuga champagne cellar was founded in 1892. They use the traditional méthode champenoise to produce their sparkling wines.
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| Rhein Azuga Founded in 1892 © Spaswinefood |
We first toured the winery, followed by a wine tasting over lunch. During our visit we introduced to the history of the cellars. The tour also included an explanation of some of the sparkling wines being produced there.
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| Display of Rhein Azuga Wine Labels © Spaswinefood |
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| Riddling, Rhein Azuga Cellar © Spaswinefood |
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| Bottling Area, Rhein Azuga © Spaswinefood |
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| Rhein Azuga History © Spaswinefood |
Over lunch we tasted some of the sparkling wines. One of the sparking wines tasted was a Rhein Extra, which was first introduced in 1906. Rhein Extra is the oldest and most recognizable brand of sparkling wines in Romania.
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| Time for Rhein Extra Brut Rosé © Spaswinefood |
Cramele Halewood, Rhein Extra Brut Rosé
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Cramele Halewood, Rhein Extra Brut Rosé © Spaswinefood
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Rhein Extra Brut Rosé & Rhein Extra Brut Imperial
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| Rhein Extra Brut Rosé & Imperial © Spaswinefood |
The sparkling wines we tasted were fabulous. Rhein Azuga is owned Halewood Wines (Halewood Romanian Group). In addition to the sparkling wines we were also introduced to a few of their still wines during lunch.
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| Soup, Rhein Azura Restaurant © Spaswinefood |
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| Steak, Rhein Azura Restaurant © Spaswinefood |
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| Grilled Vegetables, Rhein Azura Restaurant © Spaswinefood |
After a delightful lunch we left Rhein Azuga (Cramele Halewood) and continued on through the Bucegi Mountains.
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| Rhein Azura Guesthouse © Spaswinefood |
For those wishing to stay longer there are accommodations available at the Rhein Azura Guesthouse.
Bran Castle
We continued onto Bran Castle, which is commonly known as Dracula's Castle. However, it is only one of several locations in Romania that are associated with the legend of Dracula. Today the fortified castle is a museum filled with art and furniture collected by Queen Marie of Romania.
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| Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
Visitors to Bran, on the Transylvania and Wallachi border, will not be able to resist visiting this Romanian national monument and landmark.
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| Cross, Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
While most of the museum is filled with art and furniture there were also a few torturing devices on display. This only helps to keep the Dracula legend alive.
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| Torturing Artifact, Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
While like touring the castle I could not help but notice the Chateau Bran wine for sale.
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| Chateau Bran Wines © Spaswinefood |
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| Have a Bite of Romania, with Wine of Course © Spaswinefood |
Sure, we did stop for a pose while touring the castle.
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| Visiting Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
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| Exploring Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
We could not help but enjoy the views through the castle windows.
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| View from Bran Castle © Spaswinefood |
Yes, Bran Castle is a very popular tourist attraction.
Dambovicioara
Just before we arrived at Dambovicioara, our destination we stopped to toast with some sparkling wine.
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| Time for a Toast © Spaswinefood |
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| Toasting to Castles & Wine © Spaswinefood |
That evening we stayed at a pension in Dambovicioara. Over dinner we were introduced to Romanian wines. Right from the start of our wine country adventure I delighted in being introduced to white wines, with names like Fetească Alba, Fetească Regala; and red wines like Fetească Neagră.
Liliac, Fetească Albă and Fetească Regală 2015
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| Liliac, Fetească Albă and Fetească Regală 2015 © Spaswinefood |
Later in Bucharest I would taste more Liliac wines.
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| Dambovicioara Canyon © Spaswinefood |
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Romania's #Winelover Amabassador © Spaswinefood
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Still there are many more castles and wineries to visit in Romania. Just
in case you are wondering Romania has seven
wine regions: (1) Transylvania (center of the
country), (2) Moldova (north east), (3) Crisana
& Maramures (west central and north), (4) Muntenia
& Oltenia (south), (5) Banat (west),
(6) Southern Sands & Danube Terraces (south)
and (7) Dobrogea (south east); with each of
these regions containing a number of sub regions. I would like to give special thanks to Razvan Stonesecu and George Wine, for being such wonderful hosts during Spaswinefood’s vine-filled explorations in Romania. I invite you to join me in my travels in
Romania and elsewhere at Spaswinefood.
Sharon
August
2016
Bucharest,
Romania
©
Spaswinefood
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