Tours of Turkey - Cappadocia Wine Tour - 8 day tour

Group Turkey Tours

Istanbul, Ankara, Capital of Hittite Kingdom Hattusas, Cappadocia are among the main sites that we visit.

The purpose of this tour is to combine the culinary culture, wine and history. In Istanbul we enjoy Byzantine and Ottoman days with culinary specialties of these two civilizations. We follow wine tastings and courses of turkish wines both in Istanbul and in Cappadocia and also turkish music both classical and folkloric. Together with all these activities we do not miss historical places and we follow a very detailed schedule in terms of cultural visits.

In all our restaurants menus are prepared according to gourmet recipes. All wines are chosen among the local ones with the local wine grapes cultivated on these lands for thousands of years. In Istanbul we taste wines made with grapes since Byzantine times as well as those descrived by Homer in iliad.

More than 35 different specially selected wines will be tasted during this tour.

DAY 1 : ARRIVAL AND TRANSFER TO YOUR HOTEL

Upon arrival check in the hotel.

DAY 2 : BYZANTINE DAY IN ISTANBUL

Our day starts with the discovery of Byzantine monuments of Istanbul . The Church of Pammacharistos ( Fethiye Camii), The Acquaducts of Valens, Saint Sophia and The Underground Cistern are among the Byzantine sites that we discover. The lunch will take place in a local restaurant located in the historical district of Istanbul.

The menu will be based on byzantine recipes like; Tarhana (Traganos) soup, lamb cooked with spices as main and Tavuk Gogsu (breast of chicken as dessert).

Wines at lunch will be those made with the grapes also known in byzantine times.
• Kavaklidere Muscat (Dry white wine with moskhatos/misket grape)
• Buyulubag Adakarasi (Dry red wine with Adakarasi grape)

In the afternoon our Byzantine exploration of the city will continue with the Church of Saint Saviour in Chora which is also considered as one of the jewels of Byzantine art and architecture of the late period.

We will then proceed to fortification walls of Constantinople built in 5th century by Theodosius 2nd. Dinner will take place in an old byzantine cistern and will be composed of Byzantine specialties.

Wines at dinner are those produced with the byzantine grapes still cultivated today like moskhatos (misket) and papazkarasi.
• Kavaklidere Sauvignon Blanc- Sultaniye ( Dry white wine with blend of French and Turkish grapes
• Cankara Misket-Sultaniye (Dry white wine with Misket and Sultaniye grapes)
• Melen Papazkarasi (Dry red wine with papazkarasi grape)

Overnight in our Istanbul hotel.

DAY 3 : OTTOMAN DAY

Full day reserved to Ottoman monuments of Istanbul. We will discover the buildings of the classical period, not only the mosques but also bazaars. We will start with the Blue Mosque and The Topkapi Palace where ottoman sultans resided 350 years. After visiting the Mosque of Suleymaniye we will take lunch in a local restaurant with typically ottoman menu.

Wines at lunch :
• Cankara Misket ( Dry white wine )
• Karasalkim Papazkarasi ( Dry red wine with papaskarasi grape)
• Doluca Moskado (Semi dry white wine with misket grape)

In the afternoon we will stroll in Eminonu area. We will see the Rustempasa Mosque, taste Turkish Coffee in a typical shop located at the position of the first coffee-shop established in Istanbul. We will go to taste Pastirma at Namli, we will visit the Egyptian Bazaar and walk in the streets of Tahtakale, the center of the business activity both in old and present times.

Dinner will be served in a restaurant known for the traditional dishes.During the dinner we will listen to turkish classical music which takes its roots from byzantine times and continued to be the court music during Ottoman Empire. Overnight in Istanbul. At dinner we will taste wines which come from Tenedos Island on North Aegean mentioned also by Homeros in Illiad on Troy.

Wines at dinner :
• Corvus Tenea (Dry white wine produced with vasilaki grape)
• Corvus Aegea (Dry red wine produced with Kuntra grape )
• Corvus Vinium (Dry red wine produced with Karalahna grape)

Overnight in our Istanbul hotel.

DAY 4 : ISTANBUL – ANKARA – CORUM

We fly to Ankara early in the morning. Upon arrival at Esenboga Airport we go to the Museum of Anatolian Civilisations in Ankara where we can make the best introduction to the history of wine in Turkey- a history which goes back to Early Bronze age 5000 years ago. We then drive to Kalecik town the local grape called Kalecik karasi.

Wines at lunch :
• Kavaklidere Ancyra (Dry red wine produced with Kalecik Karasi local grape)
• Kavaklidere Kalecik Karasi (Dry red wine produced with Kalecik Karasi local grape)
• Chateau Kalecik Kalecik Karasi (Dry red wine produced with Kalecik Karasi local grape)

We pass Kalecik town and proceed to Corum following the bed of Kizilirmak (Red River).

Wines at dinner :
• Kavaklidere Narince – (Dry white wine produced with the local grape called Narince)
• Doluca Kav Narince - (Dry white wine produced with the local grape called Narince)
• Diren Karmen – (Dry red wine with Okuzgozu-Bogazkere grapes)

Overnight in our Corum or Sungurlu hotel.

DAY 5 : HATTUSAS – CAPPADOCIA

In the morning we depart visit to Hattusas, the capital of Hittite Kingdom which ruled in Anatolia between 1650 and 1200 B.C. The fortification walls, the gates, the temples… We then continue to Yazilikaya, the oldest open air temple of the world where we see the relief’s of Hittite gods.We have lunch near the ruins of Hattusas.

We then depart in the direction of Cappadocia through Yozgat and Bogazliyan. Upon arrival we make our first wine tasting in Cappadocia on a terrace on a vineyard in Uchisar area with the local whites and roses.

Overnight in our Cappadocia hotel.

DAY 6 : WINE ROUTES OF CAPPADOCIA

In the morning we start with a pleasant walking in Pancarlik Valley where we discover the natural color show of Cappadocia. We visit little known the beautiful church of Pancarlik. In Urgup we will visit the cellar of Turasan winery and taste wines of Turasan which is the leading wine company in Cappadocia established in 1943. We then proceed to Goreme Valley to visit the most beautiful rock carved churches in the region.The lunch on the vineyard or in a local restaurant.

Wines at lunch :
• Turasan Cappadocia (dry white wine)
• Turasan Emir (dry white wine)
• Turasan Okuzgozu (dry red wine)

Then we drive to the underground city of Derinkuyu.

In the afternoon we will visit the village of Sinasos which presents us a poetry on the stones with beautifully decorated facades of its 19th century houses. We visit beautiful churches of Sinasos like Church of Constantine and Helena and Church of st Basil.

We will also stroll in the streets of the village which has the most beautiful examples of stone carving on the houses. We then go to Derinkuyu to visit the largest underground city in Cappadocia carved until 12 levels at a depth of 75 meters. Our day will end with tasting of sparkling wines of Cappadocia produced with Emir grape.

Wines to taste at sunset:
• Kavaklidere Lal (Rose wine produced with Calkarasi grape)

Wines at dinner :
• Turasan Emir-Narince (Dry white wine produced with the blend of two grape varieties)
• Turasan Bogazkere (Dry red wine produced with Bogazkere grape of Eastern Turkey)
• Turasan Seneler (Dry red wine produced by blending Okuzgozu and Bogazkere grape varieties of eastern turkey)

Overnight in our Cappadocia hotel.

DAY 7 : WINE ROUTES OF CAPPADOCIA

We depart in the morning to go to discover ‘ Kizilcukur’ (red valley ) which is a beautiful valley with its vineyards and rock churches, especially ‘the church with grapes’. Kizilcukur is a nearly 6km long valley which extends from Ortahisar area to Cavusin village.

It takes its name from the color of its rocks. On our way to Cavusin we walk through the small vineyards of Cappadocia where local grapes like Dimrit, Kara uzum, Razaki are grown. Almost in the middle of the valley we can also visit one of the most beautiful but little known rock churches of Cappadocia : " The church with columns" Our walk ends at Cavusin village where we deserve a short stop.

Lunch is on a vineyard or in a local restaurant depending on the weather conditions. The menu is a typical of Cappadocia, based on aubergines cooked in claypot and cracked wheat. The wines to be tasted at lunch are red and white table wines of Cappadocia .

Wines at lunch :
• Kocabag Emir (Dry white wine produced with Emir grape)
• Kocabag Kapadokya (Dry red wine produced with local grapes)

We then continue to the North-west along the valley of Kizilirmak (red river) which is the longest river in Turkey, to the region of Gulsehir where we visit the old rock monastery of Aciksaray and the beautiful rock church of St. John the Baptist.

We extend towards the villages like Yesilyurt, Yuksekli and Karaburna to visit vineyards and wine production centers. We then finish our day in Uchisar with the last tasting session of the day with quality wines produced by Kocabag and Kavaklidere companies :

The dinner at a local restaurant.

Wines at last tasting :
• Kavaklidere Emir-Sultaniye (Dry white wine produced with two mentioned grape varieties)
• Kavaklidere Altin Kopuk (sparkling wine produced with emir grape)

Wines at dinner:
• Kocabag Okuzgozu (Dry red wine produced with Okuzgozu grape)
• Kocabag Bogazkere (Dry red wine produced with Bogazkere grape)
• Kavaklidere Selection (Dry red wine produced by blending Okuzgozu and Bogazkere grapes)

Cappadocia being known as the oldest center in Turkey for the carpet making and pottery, a lecture on carpet weaving for ½ hrs and demonstration of pottery making for 15. min. will be part of our activities and shopping on request.

Overnight in our Cappadocia hotel.

DAY 8 : END OF THE TOUR

This tour ends in Cappadocia after breakfast in our Cappadocia hotel. Transfer to Kayseri or Nevsehir airport is provided on request and subject to an additional charge.

Tour includes

• Welcome at the Istanbul Ataturk Airport and transfer to the hotel.
• Istanbul Accomodation in a a moderate boutique hotel in Sultanahmet area. (3 nights)
• Turkish Airlines domestic flight ticket. (Istanbul / Ankara)
• Corum Accomodation in a 3 star hotel. (1 night)
• Boutique hotel Accomodation at a boutique hotel in Cappadocia. (3 nights).
• All admissions and enterence fees mentioned in the tour program.
• 7 lunches with the mentioned wines in the program.
• 4 dinners with the mentioned wines in the program.
• Mentioned wines at the wine tastings.
• Professional tour guide (7 days).
• 18% VAT and Service charge

Tour does not include

• Personal Expenses in the hotels and tour
• Guide and driver tips
• 3 dinners

• Minimum group is 6 passengers with a maximum number of 11.
• Participants must be over 18.

Up to one third of wines can be replaced by similar samples in case of unavailability of programmed ones. Cultural and oenological guiding service will be provided by Murat Yanki who is also a wine history researcher. 


Have you considered your visa requirements? Tour Dates There are no scheduled dates. This tour can run for a group with a minimum number of 8 travellers. Prices and hotels will be subject to availability for the dates the group wants to travel.

Tour Prices

Tour Prices and Single Supplements for dates starting
	From	To	Price	SS
All Travellers	All Dates		£2239.00	£265.00