Tartu Food and Wine Festival

Text Stewart Johnson
Photo Luisa Greta Vilo / City of Tartu

Tartu is known for many things, and good food and wine are becoming some of its top-selling products. For two days each August, the immediate downtown area in the Old Town will be filled with food trucks, fair vendors selling all manner of items from handicrafts to food, and a very large wine-tasting tent. This is Estonia’s largest wine dégustation.

What makes this year special is that the wine area is now free of charge if you’d like to enter. You can bring your own glass, or purchase one on site for €3. Wines from around the world will be available for tasting and purchasing. There will also be several classes and workshops available about wines, including one by Kristjan Markii, the president of the Estonian Association of Sommeliers.

The old legend from the Bible says that Jesus turned water into wine, and a couple thousand years later he also turned Estonian wine into wine. This means that Estonian wine-makers have undergone amazing developments in their wine production, and wine-related products. The growing season for grapes here is short, obviously, so wine-makers have to be very talented. And they succeed! You can try several of Estonia’s top wines at Tartu’s Food and Wine Festival.

The event will also feature live music in the later afternoons and evenings. For more information, look here.

If somehow visitors taste too many wines and feel they need some coffee, fear not—on Sunday, 10 August, the Tammelinn district of Tartu will have its Home Café Day, where dozens of homes open their doors and gardens to the public to enjoy homemade pastries, desserts, and of course coffee.

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Events In Tartu Food and Wine Festival Home Café Day wine wine tasting