Officially Bulgaria's smallest town, Melnik is one of the country's most famous wine centres. Family-run mehanas boast their own barrels of blood-red Melnik, the unique local varietal, which is sold in plastic jugs on the dirt streets.
The major sights here, unsurprisingly, are wineries. Melnik’s wines, celebrated for more than 600 years, include the signature dark red, Shiroka Melnishka Loza; it was a favourite tipple of Winston Churchill. Shops and stands dot Melnik’s cobblestone paths, with reds and whites for 3 lv to 4 lv and up.
Museum of WineMUSEUM
Learn the history of winemaking in Melnik, ogle the 400-plus bottles of wine on display (the dirt vault is especially cool), and work your way through a tasting menu at this fun museum attached to the Hotel Bulgari. Once you find one (or four) wines that you like, fill a bottle and they'll personalise a label for you.
Mitko Manolev WineryWINERY
For the most atmospheric adventures in degustatsia (wine tasting), clamber up the cobblestones to this winery, also known as Shestaka (‘six-fingered’); it's named after the founder, who had an extra digit (as does his modern-day descendant Mitko). This place is basically a cellar dug into the rocks, plus a hut with tables and chairs outside. It’s along the hillside trail between the Bolyaskata Kâshta ruins and the Kordopulov House. Accommodation is also available (double 35 lv).
Kordopulov HouseMUSEUM
Built in 1754, this four-storey former home of a prestigious wine merchant is an impressive structure. The sitting rooms have been carefully restored, and boast 19th-century murals, stained-glass windows and exquisitely carved wooden ceilings. An enormous wine cellar (tasting available) includes 180m of illuminated labyrinthine passageways; look out for the wall full of glittering coins. The house is on the cliff face at the street’s end, south of the creek: you can't miss it.
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