We respect your privacy
Vinistra wine fair
International wine and winemaking equipment fair
“Vinistra” event is the largest and oldest regional wine and winemaking equipment fair, held every year in the Žatika hall in Poreč.
Over 100 exhibitors participate in the exhibition, of which over 70% are winemakers. The event lasts 3 days, during which the visitors can taste wines made by all the winemakers participating in the event.
Vinistra,International wine and winemaking equipment fair is a regional and international exhibition of Istrian wines and equipment for viticulture and winemaking.
Vinistra locations and dates
Until the second half of the 2000s, Vinistra was held every year at the same time (from 29 April to 2 May) in the hall of the Veli Jože Sports and Recreation Center in Poreč. In 2009, the Vinistra exhibition moved to the new, larger Žatika sports hall in Poreč, and in 2011 the event started to take place on weekends in mid-May.
Vinistra - presentation of the most important autochthonous Istrian products
It was organized for the first time in Poreč in 1994, by the Administrative Department for Agriculture, Forestry, Hunting and Water Management of the Istria County and the Institute for Agriculture and Tourism of Poreč.
At that time, Vinistra gathered approximately 20 exhibitors and had 124 wine samples. A year later (1995), the eponymous association of winegrowers and winemakers of Istria was founded, which became the organizer of the exhibition, and the exhibition started to include olive oils.
In the years that followed (1996-1998) Vinistra was expanded to include the exhibition of cheese, curd, and honey, as well as the exhibition of Istrian prosciutto and fruit brandies, thus becoming a place for the presentation of the most important autochthonous Istrian products.
Vinistra enters international waters
In 1999, wines produced outside Istria could also participate in the judging process on Vinistra, more precisely in Slovenia and Italy, but only under the condition that the wines are of indigenous grape varieties - Istrian White Malvasia, Teran and Refošk (Refosco).
Thus, wine judging took on an international character. The exhibited products (more than 300 wine samples, or more than 600 of all samples) were evaluated by international expert commissions appointed by the Exhibition Executive Board.
Malvasias of the Mediterranean
In 2003, the 10th anniversary of Vinistra was celebrated (exhibition theme: “Malvasias of the Mediterranean”), where 33 different Malvasias from the Mediterranean were presented. In addition to the wine and equipment festival, expert meetings were also organized as part of Vinistra, which addressed the current viticulture and winemaking topics.
The modern age of Vinistra
Due to restrictions on gatherings caused by the coronavirus pandemic, the Vinistra exhibition was not held in 2020. A year later (2021), and still with some restrictions due to COVID, Vinistra was held outdoors for the first time, in Peškera Bay in Poreč, at a slightly later date from 18 to 20 June. A year later (2022), Vinistra returns to its May dates (6-8 May) in the Žatika hall, where it gathered 110 exhibitors, 80 of whom were winemakers.
The World of Malvasia
In 2009, the idea for the event The World of Malvasia arose in Vinistra, where wines made of this grape variety from all over the world participate and are judged. This wine event certainly played a big role in the development, promotion and improvement of the quality of Istrian wines, as well as in the promotion and expansion of the general wine culture of Istria, including the valorization of typical autochthonous Istrian products.
Traditional event
Over time, Vinistra has become a traditional exhibition that significantly influences the development, promotion and improvement of the quality of Istrian wines, the promotion and expansion of the general wine culture in Istria, as well as the evaluation of typical local Istrian products.