On 11 November the young wine is symbolically baptised across every Croatian wine region, from Istria to Slavonia, and the cellars open. What happens, what is on the table, and where the day is worth travelling for.
Checked: 18 August 2026
Martinje is the feast of Saint Martin, and in Croatia it is the day the year's must officially stops being juice. In a ceremony repeated in cellars, squares and restaurants across the country, a mock bishop blesses the barrel, the must is baptised with a name, and the first glass of the new wine is poured. It is a religious ritual played for laughs and taken seriously at the same time, which is a fair summary of how a lot of Croatian tradition works.
Where the day is biggest
Every wine region marks it, but the character changes with the map. In Slavonia and around Đakovo and Ilok it is a full day of cellar visits and heavy food. In the hills north of Zagreb, Zagorje and Prigorje, it is the village pub and the neighbour's barrel. In Istria and along the coast the name shifts to Martinja and the tone is lighter, closer to a long lunch than a pilgrimage. Ilok, the country's easternmost wine town on the Danube, and the Plešivica hills within an hour of Zagreb are the two easiest places for a visitor to land in the middle of it.
What is on the table
Goose is the traditional centre of the meal, served with mlinci, the thin baked flatbread torn up and softened in the roasting juices. Duck stands in for goose in plenty of houses. Chestnuts appear as a side and in the desserts, and the new wine is drunk young, cloudy and lower in alcohol than it will be at Christmas. If you are ordering in a restaurant that day, the goose usually needs to be reserved in advance, because kitchens cook to the number of bookings.
Getting home afterwards
Croatia has a strict blood alcohol limit and it does not bend for tradition: zero for drivers under 25 and professional drivers, and 0.5 per mille for everyone else, with police out in force on 11 November precisely because of the day. Wine tours to Plešivica and Zagorje run from Zagreb, and in Slavonia a taxi between cellars costs less than the fine.
Frequently asked questions
- What is Martinje?
- St Martin's Day on 11 November, celebrated in Croatia as young wine day, when the must is symbolically baptised into wine and the new vintage is first drunk.
- Is Martinje a public holiday in Croatia?
- No. Shops, offices and transport run normally on 11 November. Restaurants in wine areas are the exception, since they fill up entirely.
- Where should a first-time visitor go for Martinje?
- Plešivica, the wine hills about an hour from Zagreb, for the easiest access, or Ilok on the Danube for the largest cellars and the fullest programme.
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