Rijeka Underground – the underground world of of wine and delicacies

It is clear that in cities, especially the larger ones, vineyards cannot be planted and grown under any conditions, but wine cellars cannot be looked after or cared for. It somehow belongs on a hill, in rural areas, far from urban areas.

One excellent event, which completely negates the above, attracted my attention because it turned a cultural and historical asset in the city center into an urban wine cellar. It is the Rijeka Underground festival of wine, delicacies, and music.

Rijeka, a city known for its urban atmosphere and the fact that it is the largest shipping port in Croatia, hides interesting tunnels throughout the city, according to various stories. On this occasion, the most famous one, the Tunnel RI, which is located next to the Cathedral of St. Vitus in Grivice, which is the only tunnel open to the public in Rijeka, also has a summer program, the highlight of which was the Rijeka Underground festival.

Cathedral of St. Vitus and the Tunnel Ri, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

The Tunnel Ri location is well known among the local population. It is a military tunnel that began to be built back in 1939 and was completed in 1942. It was built by the Italian army at the beginning of World War II as a shelter and protection for the population from aerial bombardment, and it was used even during the Homeland War.

Walking through the tunnel I tried to imagine what it looked like back then. Dark and cold rocks, from which water was dripping, and the frightened population listening to the sounds of enemy planes… It was not very happy back then…..

Tunnel Ri, Photo: Adria.fun

It stretches for 330 meters and is on average 4 meters wide and 2.5 meters high. This war tunnel is a long tube that stretches from the cathedral to Dolac Primary School and has two branches.

In addition to its length and historical characteristics, the tunnel also has an impressive temperature of around 15 – 18 degrees Celsius, which makes it the right place to hold a festival like this.

Interesting fact: wine, on average, is also stored in wine cellars at 15 to 20 degrees Celsius, depending on the variety.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

The festival of wine, delicacies, and music Rijeka Underground took place on July 12 and 13, and as it was boiling as hell in Rijeka on those days, a visit to the tunnel at a comfortable 20 degrees (in the summer months the temperature in the tunnels can rise degree) was a great opportunity for me to escape into the chilled underground world.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

Immediately at the entrance, where an interesting mural was recently created by the young artist Doria Valković, I was greeted by a selfie wall with huge free-standing wine glasses. A group of young visitors was already ready to pose in front of it, pushing their heads into the opening of the glass for the most effective photo. At the same time, I continued to the young hostesses who were handing out official glasses as souvenirs, catalogs, and refreshments in the form of a bottle of water.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

While they briefly explained the festival program, my attention was already attracted by the exhibition of the future of winemaking, which was located right behind the reception desk. What is very interesting is that it was created by artificial intelligence, which in a dozen exhibits conjured up and described everything that can be expected from winemaking and cellaring in the next 50 to 100 years.

I look at these pictures and imagine that future life full of robots that cultivate vineyards, take care of the quality of grapes and wine, and wineries where augmented reality is used to shape the vision of the creation of top wines, all the way to futuristic wine tasting rooms under the sea or some other water surface. As I walk past the pictures, it’s as if I’m traveling through time, and the excitement but also the uncertainty grows a little while I think about what awaits us all in the future.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

Immediately after the exhibition, exhibitors from all regions of Croatia followed. There were most wineries, of course, this is still a wine festival, but there were also interesting producers of domestic brandies who offered something to warm up at the festival when entering the lower and lower temperature parts of the tunnel.

There were also various delicacies, such as Slavonian sausages and hams, then cheeses, truffle products, olive oils, but also homemade seafood snacks. Very interesting…

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

The tunnel was appropriately light-painted in the green and blue colors of Croatia, which created an excellent visual decoration on the natural rocks of the Rijeka tunnel, and I was surprised by the quite large crowd already in the early afternoon when I visited the festival. The visitors waited patiently with a glass in hand to taste something on offer, so I did the same.

The biggest hit of the festival was the guest winery – from Slovenia who came here to show unique biodynamic wines that are prepared with a holistic approach and are stored in beautiful tall clay vessels. Everyone was looking for a few drops extra next to their stand.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

As this is also an underground music festival, a stage, and high bar tables were set up, approximately halfway through the tunnel, where I enjoyed the underground concert of the King’s group in good company, along with conversation and fine wine and delicacies. The boys played hits by local and foreign musicians, so some of the visitors even danced, and I enjoyed the pleasant atmosphere of this unusual festival.

The festival also had a humanitarian touch, so I also paid a symbolic donation to the Rijeka association Srce za nju, which helps women in the fight against chronic and life-threatening diseases, and return, I received a canvas bag that came in handy for carrying wine as well as delicacies home.

Rijeka Underground, Photo: Mirsad Mešinović, Adria.fun

With my hands full and a smile on my face, after spending three hours in the underground world of the city of Rijeka, I decided to shock my body again by exiting the tunnel and getting lost in the streets of the city of Rijeka, where the unbearable heat still reigned.

This publication was co-financed by the Fund for the Promotion of Pluralism and Diversity of Electronic Media.