PAUL SMITH
Reports that it’s not just the famed Dalmatian coast that makes Croatia so irresistible
I LOVE ice cream. I also like olive oil... with a hunk of ciabatta or drizzled over a salad. But pouring olive oil on your ice cream? Are you insane?
But that’s what I’ve just done – and, you know what, it isn’t quite as daft as it sounds. One spoonful and I’m hooked on the velvety, bitter-sweet concoction in my bowl.
This isn’t any old ice cream, though. This is homemade vanilla at the end of a magnificent meal at the Restaurant Vodnjanka in the town of Vodnjan in Istria.
Chef Svjetlana has treated us to a feast of the delicious earthy food this Italian-influenced region of Croatia has on offer: beef carpaccio, hams, cheeses, polenta with herbs, gnocchi with truffles, zesty Prosecco and moreishly light red and white wines.
And it certainly isn’t any old olive oil. It is a veritable Rolls Royce of olive oils. It is a vibrant green and arrestingly peppery, smells of freshly-cut grass and gives a mellow burn on the throat, like a fine single malt. A very distant and embarrassed relation of the bland mass-produced yellow stuff you buy at the supermarket. And it’s produced a short drive from the delightfully homely restaurant where we’ve eaten like slightly mad kings, mixing sweet and savoury with reckless abandon.
When it comes to making olive oil, the Istrian peninsula is right up at the top of the world league. A visit to one of the many producers is a must when you’re in this incredibly welcoming part of central Europe.
We’ve travelled from our base in the seaside resort of Medulin to rustic Vodnjan for a tour of Brist Extra Virgin Olive Oil’s groves and shop.
Our guide is Paul O’Grady – Dublin-born, raised in Poynton from a toddler to seven, before refining his Irish accent in Cork. Renaissance man Paul – a trained architect, published author and former journalist – married into the Puhar family behind the Brist brand after falling in love with heart-shaped Istria and settling there.
We taste a variety of different oils Brist produce, learn the production process and marvel at the precision of his father-in-law’s GPS-guided treeplanting. You can book tastings and tours via the Brist website (www. brist-olive.hr) and stock up on a few bottles of an eye-opening product – they’ll even ship you more supplies when you’ve run out.
Laid-back Istria is big on socialising, history and cafe culture.
With its stunning Adriatic coastline, charming towns, a lush green interior and food and drink to rival that found over the water in Venice, it’s becoming an increasingly popular choice for family holidays and romantic getaways.
The airport at Pula is just a two-and-a-half hour flight from Manchester – so in the time it takes to battle down the M6 to Birmingham, you could be by the pool soaking up glorious summer sunshine with temperatures averaging in the mid-70s.
You won’t break the bank either - although Croatia is in the EU, it’s outside the Euro zone and so relatively cheap for accommodation and eating out (100 kuna is roughly £12 and will buy you a good main course with a nice glass of wine).
All this, plus it feels extremely safe, the service in bars and restaurants is usually exceptional, and English is widely-spoken.
During our long weekend we manage to pack in a host of sights as destinations tend to only be a short journey away and transport links are excellent (it’s probably worth hiring a car but we got about easily using buses and taxis).
With Jet2 flying between Manchester and Pula on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Sundays from May to September, you can plan a longer trip to take in much more of a region that shows a holiday in Croatia doesn’t have to mean Dubrovnik and the Dalmatian coast.
The ship-building city of Pula is home to a magnificently-preserved first century AD Roman amphitheatre, which is where we start a walking tour with our knowledgeable guide Nada (you can hire guides via the tourist office at www.pulainfo.hr).
We learn the role animals played in the imposing arena, who sat where in the crowd, how lead was used in its construction and why the steps are just a touch too high for comfort (amphitheatre entry costs 50 kuna for adults and 25 kuna for children and students).
But it isn’t just the Romans whose legacy is preserved in Pula – we see how the Venetians, Austro-Hungarians, Mussolini and Yugoslavia’s dictator Tito have all left their mark as we wander through the busy shopping streets to the impressive Temple of Augustus... before doing as the locals do and settling into one of the several cafes that line the Roman forum and enjoying a coffee while watching the world go by.
A short journey up the coast from Pula is the beautiful town of Rovinj.
Tightly-packed colourful buildings rise from the narrow, cobbled streets which wind up to the landmark Church of St Euphemia, which looks out over the sea and is home to the remains of the town’s patron saint.
Rovinj (www.istriarovinj.com) has a distinctly artsy feel, and there are lots of little shops and galleries you can pop into while making your way down to the harbour and its array of restaurants where fresh-as-a-daisy seafood is the order of the day.
We settle on the Konoba Kantinon, and from the newspaper-style menu order a platter of seafood cicchetti – Istrian tapas – washed down with local San Servolo beer.
The generous portions of salt cod, sardines on pickled onions, octopus salad, smoked sea bass and anchovy fillets, followed by a trio of local favourite puddings – ricotta mousse, Capri cake and curd cake – show why Istria has a burgeoning reputation as a foody paradise. After piling on the pounds we head back to our hotel in Medulin, on the southern tip of Istria.
The lovely waterside and wooded walks around this traditional resort remind us of the Lake District – only with sun!
There are souvenir shops and lots of places to eat and drink, but in late season they are winding down and we spend much of our time in the stylish, popular and friendly Park Plaza Belvedere Medulin hotel. There are indoor and outdoor pools, plenty of sunbeds and a spa where you can relax with massages and look your best with a range of beauty treatments.
The main bar is busy after dark. Its wide selection of reasonablypriced cocktails – the negroni is particularly good – are the perfect accompaniment to the exceptional music acts who perform on a nightly basis.
The rooms are very comfortable and well equipped and there’s plenty of choice at the buffet breakfasts and dinners, including copious salad options, lots of fish and meat dishes and a wide range of little cakes and ice cream for dessert ... just don’t forget your olive oil.