Mmmm...wine!

A little over a month ago we experienced one of our most memorable days in Macedonia. Kavadarci, a town located near the center of the country, holds a yearly wine festival called Grozdeber. This year we decided to partake in the festivities and enjoyed taste-testing wine and cheese throughout the evening Friday. As we were with a group of American Peace Corps Volunteers naturally we stood out and at one stand we began conversing with the manager of one of Macedonia's largest wine producing companies, Tikves. Tikves Winery is located in Kavadarci, so the owner invited us to accompany him to one of the vineyards the following day to pick grapes. Of course we couldn't say no to this incredible opportunity, so Saturday morning Conor, our friend Rene and I met the manager, Gligorco, at the winery. He instructed us to each pick out a bottle of wine to take with us, making sure we chose the finest they had to offer. At this point we all thought to ourselves, "but how will we pay for all of this with only 500 denars ($10)?" It was decided we would have to ask to stop at an ATM on our way back through town.

After stopping by a market to purchase chicken, bread and other lunch items, we drove the 30 kilometers to the vineyard, situated in a remote, beautiful location with rolling hills as far as the eye can see. We were served coffee and given overalls and a jacket (mostly due to the fact that we were cold...imagine that) to wear before heading out to work. Rene and I spent the next hour and a half cutting grapes while Conor helped load cartons onto the trailer and truck. (We didn't quite master the business however as at one point Rene and I cut a whole vine of the wrong grapes...)

Our host summoned us to return after we had finished cutting our row of grapes, giving us a brief tour of the land before showing us the garden. Here we were instructed how to correctly pick a plethora of herbs and vegetables, tasting as we went. We discussed the "slow food" movement while carefully selecting fresh basil, oregano, mint, thyme, chives, radishes, peppers, spinach, lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes. After washing them all in the outside "cheshma" we prepared six different delicious salads. These were accompanied by three different types of rakija - a local type of brandy. Little did we know while we were working the employees at the vineyard had prepared a huge lunch for us with chicken, potatoes and spices, which we ate while thoroughly enjoying our three bottles of wine.

We finished up our amazing meal and thought it was about time to head back into town when we were led behind the house, where our grapes were waiting --- ready to be stomped. The previous night I had mentioned my lasting desire to stomp grapes, which apparently was remembered. After pouring our grapes into a tall, plastic barrel, Rene and I took our turn each climbing in and stomping away. We were each sent home with a large 5 gallon bottle of grape juice, yeast, sugar and instructions on how to make our own wine (which is currently fermenting). We were driven back into town, dropped off in the center, and not asked for a single dime!

Our day continued with a festive parade, at which we met a friend (Boris) of another PCV. We had been invited to attend a wine-tasting at his house that was held earlier in the day -- which we missed due to the aforementioned activities. He understood and graciously invited us to a dinner he was hosting with municipal delegations from Serbia and Poland. We spent the following couple of hours eating delicious food and drinking high-quality, home-made wine, which again was free! This day just gives a glimpse into the hospitality of the Macedonian people. Guests are highly valued and shown amazing respect. Much thanks to Boris, Gligorco and Tikves Winery -- which we will forever praise!

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