Winery Messembria · Old Nessebar
An hour or so at a small winery inside the old town: five or six dry Bulgarian wines, focaccia baked on the spot and a host who explains the local grapes to a table of ten at most. Pick it because it is the one Nessebar tour where a real person talks to you, and because the reviews keep naming him.
Winery Messembria sits inside the old town at Aheloy 7, on foot only, like everything on the peninsula. The format is simple. You sit down with at most nine other people, the host pours five or six dry Bulgarian wines one after the other, and focaccia comes out of the oven to go with them. Between glasses he talks about the local grapes and how the wine is made. The header says one hour; the description says one to one and a half, and the reviews read like the longer figure.
The Black Sea is Bulgaria's white-wine region: Dimyat, Muscat Ottonel, Chardonnay and Traminer grow along this coast, with reds like Mavrud coming from the Thracian lowland further inland. Expect a mix. Several reviewers say they were surprised by the quality, which is a polite way of saying nobody arrives in Sunny Beach expecting good wine. The host, named Kiril in review after review, gets the credit for the mood: relaxed, funny, happy to adapt the wines to the table.
Three practical points. It is 18 and over, and the listing also rules out pregnant women, so this is not the family afternoon; the family catamaran is. Bring a passport or ID card. And bottles are for sale afterwards but not included, so decide on the way in whether your luggage has room.
The winery is in the old town's lanes, walking access only. Allow ten minutes from the bus station by the walls. The booking confirmation carries the exact pin.
A table of ten at most. The host introduces the winery and pours the first white while the focaccia is in the oven.
Whites, then reds, each with a few minutes on the grape and the region. The focaccia arrives warm. Guests say the host adjusts the line-up to what the table likes.
Time to ask what to buy and where. Bottles are sold on the spot and are not part of the price.
You are in the middle of the old town. The south promenade and the harbour are a few minutes away.
★★★★★Food was amazing and unexpected the amout we got.
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The listing header says one hour and the description says one to one and a half. Count on the longer figure if the table is chatty, which it usually is.
No. The tasting is for guests aged 18 and over and the listing also excludes pregnant women. Families looking for something to do together should look at the family catamaran or the beaches in our kids guide.
Five or six dry Bulgarian wines, chosen by the host. The listing does not publish a fixed list, and reviewers say the line-up adapts to the group. The Black Sea region is known for whites such as Dimyat and Muscat Ottonel; reds like Mavrud come from further inland.
At Aheloy 7 in the old town, reachable on foot only. From the bus station by the walls it is about ten minutes through the lanes. Your booking confirmation has the map pin.
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Five or six dry Bulgarian wines and focaccia from the oven at a family winery inside the old town, ten guests at most.
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