Vinobrani 09

September is Vinobrani time. It's the new wine season when wine festivals across the country feature stands stacked with liters of burčak or stormy wine - the grape's cider. Wine festivals seem almost always to include fun fairs too, and costumed reenactors [4&6], booths full of handmade toys and gingerbread valentines [3].

Last weekend we drove to Roudnice nad Labem to check out the Lobkowiczs' vinobrani celebrations and visit some friends. The weather was beautiful, just right for a vinobrani day, and the children loved running from booth to booth trying out the wooden swords and shields (C added a shield to her collection), and begging for the very many choices of candy and helium balloons.

Roudnice is built around the chateau [1], which stands just above the Labe river. The Lobkowicz family is gradually restoring the chateau now, and it has the air of a decayed beauty with a well built roof promising better days ahead. We arrived early, before twelve and burčak time, but not too early for sausages [5], or for several rides on the merry go round [center].

Vinobrani at Grebovka

 

On Saturday the new wine festival moved from namesti Miru to Grebovka, and we went with it. So did the rest of Prague 2, as you may be able to tell in the top picture. James philosophically watched the crowds while Caroline and her friends learned about spinning, weaving, coin making, and how to get the best view in an outdoor concert (from your father's shoulders of course). We dutifully stood in line for our burčak and vowed that next year we'd beat the crowds and come earlier.

We did not have a bite of Krtek (our favorite little mole), even though he was much admired by the little girls. As Caroline and I finally decided, his picture would last a lot longer than his cookie presence.

Vinobrani in Prague 3

This is Prague 3's twelfth year celebrating vinobraní in fair fashion. Our reporters abroad (over in Prague 3 that is) tell me that the crowds yesterday were thick, the music loud and the cotton candy copious. We had our share of the throng yesterday too in namesti Miru, and the whole family went home happy with cups of burčak* for Will and me, and cider for Caroline.

*burčak = newly pressed wine, so called because of its stormy appearance. In Austria, Switzerland and Germany it is known as sturm.

New Wine Time in Prague

 

It's new wine time in the Czech Republic and this weekend we'll be celebrating vinobraní, or the wine harvest, in our neighborhood. Over on náměstí Míru, an old-fashioned market is all set up today, selling freshly pressed wine and trinkets. Tomorrow, the festival moves to Grébovka, with more wine and live music. More pictures to come!