Istrian wine, Malvazija and Teran

A morning in a cool cellar among the vines, with the grower pouring what his own family makes, is one of the deep pleasures of inland Istria.

It begins at a plank table in the half light of the cellar, the grower drawing a cork on a bottle he pressed himself, his oil and a little cheese set beside it, the whole morning yours to take at the pace of conversation.

The white is Malvazija Istarska, native to this soil and grown here at its finest, dry and bright, and in the best hands rested in acacia wood for weight and long life. The red is Teran, deep and firm, carrying a thread of iron straight from the red earth, a wine made for game and for the open grill.

The signed Istrian Wine Roads run through these hills, and the small family cellars around Momjan and Motovun keep their doors open the year through, with September the most beautiful moment of all, when the fruit comes in and the whole valley carries its scent.

Through the week the same wines return quietly to your table, and a case of the one you loved most travels home with you. Tell us what you reach for in a glass, and a morning in a cellar, or a whole week of the Istrian table, is composed around it.