The Krsnik family from Kutjevo has been opening the doors of their home on St Martin's Day for 11 years to host numerous visitors and hiking enthusiasts. This traditional gathering records a growing number of guests each year, and today counts almost 100 visitors.
The most numerous guests are hikers from neighbouring countries who spend two to three days in the Kutjevo region, enjoying communal socialising and local customs. The gathering began as a meet-up of a few closest friends and mountain lovers, but over time has grown into a significant event for the wider community.
The host of the evening is Vinko Krsnik, a member of the Croatian Hiking Society "Vidim" from Kutjevo, who organises the entire event together with his family. The central part of the programme is the traditional St Martin's ritual of baptising must into wine, which this year was led by wine bishop Ivan Fistrić, better known as Fio Kutjevski. The wine godparents were Ljiljana Zrnić from Valjevo and Ante Romac from Sinj.
Guests were greeted at the very beginning with warm, free beans from a large cauldron, and during the evening they enjoyed young, newly baptised wine and last year's Graševina. The Slavonian celebration did not omit song, laughter and dance, which lasted deep into the night, creating a special atmosphere of community and tradition.
