St. Martin Day
Why is goose traditionally roasted in Bohemia and why do we open that year’s young wine on St. Martin’s Day? It is linked to an old tradition when work agreements with housemaids and servants were renewed on St. Martin’s Day. Some stayed in service for another year, others said farewell and went to a different house. The lady of the house would prepare a festive lunch on that day as thanks, and she would roast a fattened goose. The winemaker let the people who worked so hard at his vineyard taste the new wine.
Goose meat is cooked in different ways all around the world; it is roasted stuffed with chestnuts or liver, seasoned with pepper and rosemary, or stewed with apples, oranges or even sour cherries; the Czech roasted goose is a classic delicacy that preserves the deliciousness and taste of the meat. It is brined in salt, seasoned with caraway seeds and marjoram, and stuffed with apples. The side dishes include stewed cabbage, bread or potato dumpling, or even potato pancakes. You can try our recipe:
http://www.czechspecials.cz/recepty/hlavni-jidla/drubez/pecena-hodova-husa


 
St. Martin’s Day is a traditional rural Czech festival. There is a banquet, processions in costumes, maypoles are raised, there are parties and masses. Traditional dishes, typical of the regions and areas, are prepared.
 
Today, you can enjoy St. Martin festivities even in cities. There are markets and most quality restaurants offer a special St. Martin menu, which usually includes a goose pâté, kaldoun – soup made of goose giblets and root vegetables, and roasted goose with dumpling and stewed cabbage. Naturally, you can pair the goose with St. Martin’s wine or properly chilled beer.
 
Where to go for goose dishes:
You can enjoy the St. Martin menu in our Czech Specials certified restaurants.
www.penzionkovarna.cz
www.malesickymikropivovar.cz
www.mlynskydomov.cz
www.napekarne.com
www.praha.ossegg.cz
www.hotelinternational.cz

The French Have Beaujolais Nouveau, the Czechs Have St. Martin Wine!

St. Martin wine is the first wine of the year you can drink for the first time on St. Martin’s Day, on 11 November at 11 o’clock. The wine is fresh and fruity; it has only matured for a few weeks, but it already has its distinct character. The St. Martin brand is a rarity in the world; this excellent marketing idea came from one extraordinary Czech winemaker. The ‘St. Martin’ trademark was registered in 1995 and the Czech Wine Fund has owned it since 2005. When a winemaker wants to use the trademark, they have to meet all the technical terms and conditions for the licence under the regulations of the Wine Fund. Moreover, the quality of wine is assessed by an independent committee. However, only some varieties are suitable for the St. Martin trademark: those that ripen sooner in our conditions and thus offer the required high quality of grapes in time. St. Martin wines include single-variety wines as well as cuvée, which is wine made of several varieties. Czech restaurants offer St. Martin wine together with roasted goose, with which the young wine pairs really well. Several millions of bottles of young wine are sold every year; come and taste it yourselves!