The stunning view from Apartmani Bella VistaMotovun, with a population of around 600 residents, is another hilltop village fortified by the Venetians in the 14th century with stunning views of the Mirna valley, where truffles are found. This town has a bit more going on than many of the others - with several restaurants, galleries, wine tasting rooms, and of course truffle shops.

At the Pizzeria Propeler we had a fantastic pizza with big chunks of parmesean and fresh rocket (arugula), and one of the best salads we've had so far.

Dinner that night is at Konoba Mondo, which was reviewed by the New York Times. A quaint and comfortable little place with friendly service, and just across the street from our apartment. We started with carpaccio of beef with black truffles, which was absolutely divine. A  bottle of Degrassi Cabernet Franc, perfectly dry and structured, was a perfect match. And then finally - our first experience of Istrian white truffles with polenta. Now I understand what all the fuss is about. This is a totally unique taste, but it's the aroma that sets these apart. It infuses everything around it and is  so unique, heavenly and rare. It is so good that we return the next night and have the carpaccio again (I love the stuff), tagliatelle with white truffles and veal in a malvasia sauce.

I love food festivals, and Sunday is truffle festival day in Livade, which is just a few kilometers (and down the hill) away. There is an outdoor stage with the loudest band in the world playing at 11:00 a.m. on a Sunday - why!? And a large tent with many truffle hunters, wine producers and fancy foods. My kind of place, and it is totally free. We get to taste some fantastic wines that are all quite naturally made within about 10 kilometers of Motovun - Vina Zigante, Franc Arman (fantastic barrel-aged wines), and Vina Tomaz. We taste olive oils, cheeses, prust and pastas. And we get to see the truffle harvests and witness the truffle auction. How cool is that?

Our final dinner in Motovun is at Konoba Pod Voltum, where we have Istrian beef goulash, a savory and comforting dish and beef steak with mushrooms and fries. It is so tender that I can cut it with a butter knife, and the fries are perfect!

We leave Motovun in a spectacular thunderstorm - thunder, lightning, hail, heavy rain and strong winds. In three days it has turned from the end of summer to fall, and it's time to go home.

Thank you, Istria for the delicacies!

The aging room at Vina Cattunar, one of the larger producers we visitedOur first winery visit explains that a bit. Traveling along north towards Motovun, we see our first sign for a wine road (they being to pop up everywhere) and we take it, ending in the tiny village of Kaldir which is so small we see no signs of life. But we explore a bit and find the small producer Vina Benvenuti. After a quick but somewhat confused greeting (apparently they don't get many visitors), our host gives us a quick tour of the winery, which is in a small house in the village, and then to a very modern and fancy tasting room.

He has just returned from the states (the Grand Canyon) and has an education in business so that he could run that side of the winery, which is run by his father (and his father before that). They have a consultant winemaker, which of course in the states is common, but here it is a new approach. He explains to us that it is only in the past few years that they've really been using modern methods (stainless steel, new grape varietals, blending, etc.) because during the wars production had mostly ceased, except for local use.

The local grapes are Teran (red) and Malvasia (white). We are finding that in many cases they have a finish that is similar to retsina, not entirely pleasant and apparently an acquired taste? But some producers, including this one, are making Terans and Malvasias that are structured and dry, with none of that aftertaste. Why? No one could seem to explain this to us. "It's just the way it's made," they say. Hmmm....

We visited about five different producers over the course of a few days, and in every case they were surprised to see us, despite all of the tourism information and numerous signs. But in every case we were welcomed with generous pours - from the tiny producer Leonardo Palcic in the tiny town of Dajla on the coast who was working in his garage facility to the large, modern winery Vina Cattunar just outside of Nova Vas.

The path around the wall

There are 30 or so galleries here, the Jeunesses Musicales - an international music school, and the Imaginary Film Academy. In the summer there are music concerts nearly every day, and a Jazz festival. Sometimes traveling off-season has its drawbacks. Many of the galleries were already closed and no music. We'll have to return someday...

We loved the fireplace in the kitcheBy walking around a bit and identifying rental apartments by their blue signs, we found a beautiful place to stay for a couple of nights, run by the family Pucer.

This three-level place had a kitchen and living area on the bottom level, complete with a wood-burning fireplace, a bedroom on the second level that slept three and another bedroom on the third level with a small terrace and half bath. It was clean, comfortable and the best deal of our whole trip at just $50 per night. (One interesting side note. In Istria, most of the rooms were priced by the person - not the room. Makes sense in many ways, but keep that in mind when you're checking out the prices!) Amazingly this place had an eclectic mix of CDs for the little boom box - including Elvis and the Smiths. Go figure. With such a lovely place to hang out, we had one dinner and simple breakfasts here.

We explored the tiny town (which doesn't take long at all), and visited most of the galleries. I bought a very cool and unusual bracelet direct from the artist (the best way, I believe). Zigante, the truffle giant of central Istria, has a wine tasting room and shop here, where we tasted some amazing local wines, had small sandwiches with truffle spread, and got some recommendations on wineries to visit.

It was also in Grozjnan that we had what was the very best dish of our entire trip at the Restaurant Bastia. For such a simple dish - carbonara - it was just elevating. The homemade tagliatelle was so light that Matt said it was the "pasta of angels." The pancetta infused the creamy sauce with the most amazing, delicate smokey flavor. I can still remember the taste of it today.

I had a nice seafood risotto there as well, which was delicious, and a litre of the house Merlot which was quite fine. All this in a lovely and romantic little courtyard.

All in all, this was our favorite place by far in all of Istria. Maybe it was the artist influence, but the town felt a little more "open" and authentic to us than some of the others. Maybe it was the Elvis. But we'd definitely return here again.

How do you attract tourists to your tiny little hamlet of 6 residents? Declare yourself "the smallest town in the world" as Hum did, and set up a few souvenir shops.

But it was clear that the towns had come to accept this as the tourism way, and unfortunately we felt that it left these towns pretty sterile. Maybe it was because it was off-season, but we had a hard time finding what felt like any local culture, even in the evening after they had gone. There were so few local residents. Conversations were limited to taking orders for coffee and meals, as locals do hundreds and hundreds of times a day, then head down the hills to their more affordable homes.

Yes, we enjoyed visiting these beautiful little historical gems and awed at the architecture and fortifications. But even this supposedly "undiscovered" area seems that it is quickly turning into a sanitized version of what it could be, and that was just a little unfortunate.   

And one final note. While I'm mentioning Germans a lot here in this blog I should say that I have nothing against them - they are adventurous (we see Germans everywhere we travel) and jovial. It's just this style of tourism that I wonder about...

Our favorite Konoba meal in Brsec, a small town on the East coast, at Konoba BatelanI foud a great guidebook - Istra Gourmet - which I had downloaded from the website and then picked up a hard copy in a tourist offie at the beginning of our trip. This book covers the wine roads, the olive roads, and all of the specialties. It also has a great list of restaurants, taverns and agritourism places which was incredibly helpful. 

My first taste of truffles at Humska Biska, in Hum, "the smallest town in the world." After this, we were given the local grappa, made from miseltoeThe menus at Konobas followed nearly the same formula at each place. Starters of carpaccios (beef or fish), soups (including the special manestra, or minestrone), a variety of pastas with meat ragus in the interior and fish on the coast, a range of special meat dishes (including the Istrian ox, pork loin and sausages), and simple salads. I was amazed that these tiny places, usually run out of someone's home, could hold that much inventory!

Steak with mushrooms and truffles at Konoba LucianaKonoba Luciana in Nova Vas, the heart of wine country, was the only business in town, with a small terrace in front of Luciana's home. As an Italian, we had a lot of fun with her and her guests. We had asked for an Insalata Verde (green salad) and she said, "I'll see what I have in my garden." Perfect. This is exactly why we came here - I read that most of the food you eat in Istria is probably sourced within 10 kilometers of where you are, and that is certainly proving to be the case. The Italians buy us grappa rifosco, which is a different style. It is sweet and strong, with intense clove flavors.

Agritourism DOL - The view from our terrace

The dining room, set for a big partyThis large family has been in this location for centuries. They make their own prsut (Istrian proscuitto), cheese, wine, grappa and olive oil and have cattle, horses, pigs, chickens, donkeys, rabbits and doves on the farm in a beautiful, quiet valley.

After a welcome quartino (quarter of a litre) wine, we get settled into our room, which is small but pleasant, has a small terrace with a great view of the valley and farm and a teeny tiny little private bathroom.

We head downstairs to the quaint restaurant for dinner. Most of the agritourism places have these somewhere on their property (often in their lower levels) and are usually open to the public with reservations. A very large table is set for about 30, so we wonder what is going on. We are sat at a comfy small table next to a cozy fireplace.

Up until now, since we've been in high tourist areas, we haven't really needed to speak Croatian. Depite the fact that everyone immediately thinks we're German (did I mention how many German tourists there were?), once they find out we're American (and usually surprised at that), people have been generous about helping us by speaking a bit of English, or a mix of that and Italian, which we're a little more experienced with, and which is pretty common in the coastal and northern regions.

Here our hostess does not speak English and despite her gracious attempts we are having more difficulty communicating. I was hoping to learn to cook the local specialties (as described on the website) or find out more about the farm and its workings and products. But we are hampered by the language and I'm a bit disappointed that we are unable to make more of this opportunity. We have been studying our Croatian phrase book and practicing on the plane and in the car but it's just not the same as speaking it in the environment. So we try to make the pleasantries at least and this is met with appreciation.

Her daughter does speak English and she serves our dinner and talks with us this evening. I have brought some of my fig ginger bourbon jam to share as a gift with our hosts and present it to her. She brings out an amazing and comforting chicken soup. The broth is so clear and light, and it's filled with fine egg noodles. Home cooking at its best!

The large party is starting to gather and we are trying to figure out what is going on. There is a priest (apparently from town), gifts, and merriment. And lots of grappa! We greet them with dobra večer (good evening) as they arrive.

Our second course comes out. It is homemade gnocchi, fuzi and ravioli stuffed with their cheese. And delicious chicken ragu to top it all. They share grappa with us (again, gratis) after dinner. It is strong and we're amazed that the group (including the priest!) is drinking so much of it. As we drift off to sleep upstairs we hear the group singing Amazing Grace. How soothing.

Breakfasts in the morning are simple (as most European breakfasts are), with bread, cheese, preserves and prsut - all homemade and all delicious. As we check out after our second night, she gives me a small version of the wine vase you see in the photo above as a thank you gift. It's sweet and most appreciated!

We swing by for a day mostly to see these ruins. A $8 ticket gets us into the ampitheatre, which is remarkably well-preserved, with two rows of 72 arches and an almost fully-intact outer wall.

 The Citadel

We wander through the arch and up through the 17th-century citadel and back down to the old section of town. Here is the Forum, the town's central meeting place, which has the Temple of Augustus, erected from 2 BC to AD 14 and the old town hall. We wander some more, poke our heads into Pula's 5th-century cathedral, have a quick wine and beer and then we're off!

Sunset on our first nightAlthough not typical for us, we chose to stay at the Hotel Adriatic - partly because we had originally planned to take the ferry from Venice and would arrive late in the evening (we ended up renting a car) - mostly because of its perfect location, with an amazing view of the harbor - and finally because I found a great deal at 50% off (about $65/night), which is the kind of thing you come across traveling off season and with research time on your hands. The hotel was fine and comfortable, but the interior renovation job is very austere compared to its historical and beautiful facade. Breakfast (included) was a wonderful buffet, complete with Western luxuries that are rare in Europe - eggs and ham to order.

We spent our days exploring the old streets and marveling at the marble stones and the architecture. Dinner the first night was at Veli Joze. This quaint and comfortable place is full of tchotkes. We have seafood risotto, fuzi (a pasta shape we are quick to discover is ubiquitous in Istria) with a meat ragu and grilled stuffed squid. It's sublime. After dinner we discover the local grappa two ways (with herbs and with honey) at a lively little bar in a tiny square.

The next day we wake to an absolutely perfect and glorious day. It's about 80, clear and calm. We've been eyeing a nice-looking tour boat in the harbor, and while we usually don't do these tourist-kind of things it is just too beautiful a day to stay off the water.

The Delfin from the Pirate's CaveWe negotiate a 6-hour excursion on the Delfin that will take us around the local islands and up the Lim Fjord complete with a fish "picnic" and all-you-can-drink wine and grappa for about $100. There are only about six other people on the large boat, so we feel like we have it to ourselves. The Delfin staff guys are a fun bunch - playing super-cheesy American classic rock and keeping our cups full. In the Fjord we stop off at the "Pirate's Cave" for a little exploration. It's a blissful, relaxing day.

That evening we find Giannino, an Italian place in the old town. We started with a fish carpaccio, which just melted in our mouths and was so fresh and awesome. Another dish of grilled squid (we love the stuff) and herbed noodles with mushrooms and shrimp. We have our first experience of Istrians offering us local grappa gratis (this would happen a lot, we find). This one is dark, sweet and strong - similar to Yagermeister.

Everyone here is quickly speaking English to us so it's pretty easy to communicate so far. One thing we immediately notice is that most of the tourists (which there are a fair number given that it's off-season) are Germans. A few Italians, a few Brits. No Americans. Interesting...

Map by Europe A La Carte

Tips, links and experiences from a visit to Rovinj, Groznjan, and Motovun, traveling the wine roads and eating well in October, 2009.

"Much of what you'll eat in Istria is produced within a 10-mile radius..." "absurdly simple cooking, few but absolutely local and seasonal ingredients..." These are the kinds of things I had read about Istria, the peninsula at the top of Croatia that is surrounded by the Adriatic Sea. Intrigued by thoughts of super-local foods, I decided to make it my next travel destination.

My husband and I put together a three-week itinerary—some time with family friends in Northern Italy, a few days in Venice, and then a luxurious week and a half to explore this small but diverse area. And, we would coincide our trip with Truffle Days, conveniently timed around my birthday in early October.

As I was planning our trip I was surprised to discover a lack of travel guides, articles or travelogues written by Americans. The New York Times had a few articles. Lonely Planet's Croatia guidebook had a scant but helpful 20 pages on this region. I was able to find a few articles from British, Canadian, and a other travelers around the world. Official Istria websites (general and gourmet) were also enormously helpful. Tips found digging deep on Slow Food, Chowhound, Virtual Tourist and Google Earth rounded out our preparations. (Did I mention I was unemployed!?)

Logging our travel adventuresI was determined to log our experiences in detail so when I returned I could share a full account of our travels with other Americans who are interested in this beautiful country, and those who so generously shared their own tips and experiences.

I should first recommend that any visitor to this country should familiarize themselves on its rich and often stormy history, so you can understand some of the factors that have driven its geography, society and food culture. This ancient region was an important trade route in the 2nd millenium BC, and has been ruled by a host of empires and countries, including Rome, the Huns, Germany, Venice, Austria, France, Italy, and of course most recently Yugoslavia. Its recent independence (1991) is evident in some interesting ways, including the wine industry.

Also, you should know that our travel style revolves around architecture, food and local culture. We don't do a lot of tours and museums, we mostly stay in local apartments or rooms, and we try to travel relatively cheaply but well. So, here it is! Dobrodošli!