Wine tasting near Varna: wineries, tours and how to book

Wine tasting in Varna is easy to arrange: the city has its own urban winery, and more wineries lie in the countryside around it, from the coast north of the city to the Provadia plateau inland. Varna sits in the Black Sea wine region, known for whites such as Dimyat, Riesling and Traminer. The municipal tourism site Visit Varna lists seven wineries in and around the city and advises booking every visit directly with the winery. Below is what each one offers, what a tasting involves and how to get there and back without driving.

Which wine region is Varna in?

Bulgaria is traditionally divided into five wine regions: the Danube Plain, the Black Sea, the Rose Valley, the Thracian Lowlands and the Struma Valley. Varna and the northern coast belong to the Black Sea (Eastern) region, where the sea, the mild climate and the soils favour white grapes: Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, Pinot Gris, Riesling, Traminer and above all Dimyat, a traditional Bulgarian variety widely grown along the coast (Visit Varna). Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon and Pinot Noir are grown as well. According to Wikipedia, the region holds about 30% of Bulgaria’s vines.

A local curiosity: Bulgaria’s first grape-therapy centre opened on 10 September 1933 at the resort of St Constantine and Helena, and the resort still holds an annual festival of grape healing and wine.

Which wineries near Varna offer tastings?

The wineries named by Visit Varna fall into three easy groups:

• In the city: Wine Odessos in Vladislavovo, reachable by city bus.
• Close to the city: the historic winery of Euxinograd, 8 km from Varna; Varna Winery, 2 km from the coast near Golden Sands and Albena; and, to the west, Prisoe and Chateau Boshnakoff near the Stone Forest (Pobiti Kamani).
• A day out: Salla Estate on the Provadia plateau, about 60 km away, and Jarava in Mlada Gvardia.

Visit Varna also lists two wineries further inland: Tsarev Brod near Shumen and Villa Ovcharovo, a winery and hotel 12 km from Targovishte. Details for each are in the list on this page.

What does a tasting include?

Formats differ, so read the winery’s own page before you go:

• Short tasting: a guided look at the cellar and three wines, about an hour at Wine Odessos; Varna Winery lists 90-minute tastings.
• Vineyard walk and lunch: Salla Estate’s Extra package adds a walk through the vineyards and cellar and lunch in its restaurant.
• Wine weekend: Salla Estate also offers dinner, a night and breakfast with a tasting.
• Palace and wine: at Euxinograd the palace tour is the main visit; ask about the tasting when you book.

Organised wine tours, wine-themed boat trips and gourmet tours are also sold for Varna on booking platforms. Compare what is included (transport, number of wines, food) and which winery you will visit.

How to book a winery visit

Wineries are working farms, not bars, so always book ahead. Visit Varna’s advice is to contact the winery of your choice directly, and Salla Estate and Chateau Boshnakoff hold tastings only by arrangement. Wine Odessos asks for an email, a social media message or a call. For Euxinograd, send the names of everyone in your group to the email address on the official page. Ask which language the tasting is in: Odessos hosts in English and French, and Prisoe lists English, Russian and French.

Getting there and drink-driving

Bulgaria’s blood alcohol limit is 0.5 per mille for all drivers (ETSC), and heavier cases are treated as crimes, with courts able to confiscate the car (BNR). Even a few tasting glasses can put you close to the limit, so:

• take a city bus to Wine Odessos (lines 14, 20, 118, 148 and 209);
• book a taxi or a tour with transport for the wineries outside the city;
• or choose a sober driver, and use the spittoon if you are that driver.

When to go

Autumn is the grape harvest, when the vineyards change colour, and Visit Varna recommends it for wine trips. Varna’s own wine calendar also includes Trifon Zarezan, the vine-pruning feast on 14 February. For rakia, boza and the other national drinks, see Bulgarian drinks: rakia, wine, boza.

How to book

Book directly with the winery using the contacts on its website, or compare organised wine tastings from Varna on GetYourGuide through the link on this page; we do not sell tours or tickets ourselves.