Cherry
The Brda region has always been known for its cherries, and it is well known that Brda cherries are the most delicious. That is why, along with St Martin's Day, the Cherry Festival is one of the main events that attracts many visitors to Brda. The cute little fruits on their stalks, especially the first ones, juicy and red, crisp and plump, enchant all generations. What's better than climbing up a tree and simply plucking them off the tree branches? Or simply curling up under a shady tree top and enjoying the sweet breeze.
Old varieties such as black and white “cepika”, “drugmbernca”, “napoleonka”, “čufarca”, “tercinka”, “čempevka”, “vedrjanka” and others were carried in baskets and transported on carts by the Brda people, and made into many delicious dishes. They were already prized in imperial Vienna, and were enjoyed by the elite in distant St Petersburg, Prague and other European capitals. A special postal service ensured fresh deliveries, and for the Brda people it was their first income after a long winter.
Peach
Peaches reign supreme in Brda in summer, and when picked at the optimum time, they are extremely tasty, aromatic and healthy.
Every spring, you will be enchanted by the sight of peach groves in bloom. Thousands of tiny pink blossoms scattered across the hills of Brda bring a fairy-tale atmosphere to the land.
They are also very popular with housewives, who like to treat visitors to peach compotes, marmalades and juice in winter.
Fig
The ripe fruit of the fig tree has always been valued by the Brda people, both the medniče, belice, bonke, madone, which were eaten and sold fresh (“medniče”, “belice”, “bonke”, “madone” and others), and the medniče, belice, bonke, madone , which were mainly dried for sale in winter.
They were first sulphurised by stacking them on the edge of a basket with the stalks up, placing coals under the basket, pouring sulphur on them and tying a bottomless barrel (“plawnca”) over the top, and leaving them like that for several hours. They were then sun-dried, pressed, re-sulphurised and stacked tightly in wooden crates. In December, when they were covered with sugar, they were sold.
Some people skewered the dried figs on willow sticks and tied them in a ring. For domestic use, the figs were halved and dried in the sun or on the stove. Black figs, which were used to make coffee, were particularly well dried. Most of the time, the children only got as far as the “rapulj”, the remaining part at the stem, which they cut off the dried figs.
As people are becoming more aware of the good qualities of figs, interest in them is growing again. You can find them in Brda at all times of the year.
Pear
The old, most widespread pear varieties in Brda are the perifigi, brutebone, aljanke, moškatevke and pituralke. They were also kept for the winter in Brda homes. They were stored in the attic, where they were piled on the floor on top of beans or put in baskets or small crates. The bad ones were sliced and dried on the stove or in the sun.
“Pituralke” were almost completely forgotten as new varieties somehow replaced them, but gourmets took matters into their own hands and for a decade now, efforts have been under way in Brda to revive this outstanding pear variety. Nowadays, you can buy them in major supermarkets or directly from the growers. If the tradition of how this variety was prepared had not been preserved, this pear would have been completely worthless and would probably no longer be known today. They are characterised by the fact that only the most stubborn eat them freshly picked, as they have a coarse grain structure, rather little flavour and are hard. They show their charms only after their ripening in cold storage, where they overwinter until mid-March, and are at their sweetest when roasted or cooked in fresh water or wine.
Chestnut
Chestnut picking is still popular in Gornja Brda. It is roasted in coals or in a special perforated dish. Before roasting, the shell is cut open and the roasted chestnut is wrapped in a cloth for a while so that the inner shell comes off and peels more easily.
Chestnuts are also cooked to make delicious dishes such as potica, stew (kuhnja), “močnik”, dumplings (gnocchi), flancati (“floki”), etc.
The thicker chestnuts (“maron”) were sold and exchanged for flour and corn in Friuli, while the other variety remained for domestic use. Chestnuts are first plucked from the trees with sticks in late autumn. Women and children picked it up from the ground with wooden tongs made from fresh hazel tree branches. They carried unpeeled chestnuts home in baskets and larger quantities were taken away by cart. They were picked fresh from the prickly shells to sell. It was best preserved unpeeled, and peeled chestnuts were kept in sand or air-dried.
It is still traditional to serve roasted chestnuts with new wine on St Martin's Day.
Plum
A real speciality among plums is prunela - plum processed in a special way, once very typical of Brda, but now almost forgotten as a speciality of Brda tradition. Among dried fruits, they were considered a large and very expensive speciality, almost exclusively for sale abroad.
The peeling of plums is one of the most interesting chapters in the history of Brda. According to sources, #prunele” production began in Brda in the early years of the 19th century, around 1810, when the fruit was supposedly brought to the area by the French during Napoleon's reign. In Brda, the prunele-making season lasted from about 15 August to 10 October, when the hay was harvested and the grape harvest was approaching. Plums were peeled in several villages in Brda, with the villages of Šmartno and Medana as the centres.
The work was organised exclusively by men, and the plums were almost without exception peeled by women. The men were also responsible for carrying the “piconi” (cane wood for drying), stacking them, weighing them and putting them into crates.
The peeled plums had to be sulphured. Some put them in special boxes, and the boxes in incense. After sulphur treatment, they were placed on “rošti”, special racks so that the plums were exposed to the sun as much as possible. In good weather, they dried for two to three days. They were then put in crates to await the time for the process known in the lower Brda region as “pogačanje” or “penšanje”. “Pogačanje” means that plums were pitted, and squeezing them two and two together and shaping them into coin-like round “pogačice” or “prunele”. The plums were sulphured again before they are sold to give them a little extra sanitisation.
Grapes
The old grape variety of Brda, modest and persistent, is definitely the Rebula. It thrives well on marly, flysch and stone soils. In sunny positions, it produces exceptional results. The grapes are suitable for young and fresh wines as well as for archiving. The wine is an excellent base for sparkling wines. Traditionally, the Rebula grapes were also dried in Brda to produce an excellent dessert wine. The wine is golden yellow in colour with greenish reflections. The aroma is intensely fresh and fruity. It is reminiscent of lemon, green apple, grapefruit and acacia blossom. The harmony of the acids gives it a drinkability and freshness. These excellent, ripe wines taste of cedar.
Rebula wine is suitable as an aperitif, and is an excellent complement to seafood, freshwater fish, poultry and vegetable dishes.
An old variety typical of Brda is making a comeback in vineyards and cellars, and is once again taking its rightful place among white wines. Today, Rebula is a wine that is once again admired and appreciated. Interesting stories are being told about its origins. It was first mentioned in 1336 in Višnjevik, where an annual feast is held in its honour (on the first Saturday in May). Experts predict that the time of the Rebula is yet to come.
Khaki
The microclimatic situation in Brda is very favourable for growing khaki. The almost spray-free cultivation, the rich vitamin composition and the excellent, exotic flavour are the key advantages that have led more and more gourmets and health food lovers to demand it. It is rich in vitamins and minerals, high in dietary fibre and low in protein and fat.
Harvesting begins when the fruit is yellow, even at the stalk. Prematurely harvested fruit does not reach its intense orange colour and full flavour during the ripening process.
It is best to eat the fruit fresh, as it loses its vitamin value if processed in any way. Fresh khaki is available from the end of October to the beginning of January. Outside its season, this special fruit is also available dried, still very juicy and full of flavour.
Apricot
The last days of spring bring the first, juicy apricots to Brda. In addition to the many varieties, one of the old varieties with great taste and popularity, is the so-called “flokar”. The flesh is orange, juicy, pleasantly sweet and sour and quite aromatic. It is particularly rich in vitamins A and C.