I generally like the underdog--I like the dark horse. I like trying new things.  I guess this is in part why I am here in Bulgaria. On a whole, I think there's a lot to like here and half of it is figuring out how to access it.

Recently the NYT and other newspapers have been spending time exploring Eastern European wines.  There was this article on <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/10/dining/10pour.html?scp=1&amp;sq=wine%20hungary&amp;st=cse">Hungarian whites in February</a> and another that I can't find on Slovakian wine (which I am beginning to wonder if I made up because I can't find it).  And these two articles got me thinking about wine and the American interest in Eastern European wine.

Part of the interest seems to rest in the fact that Eastern Europe is relatively unexplored by many Americans but it's accessible now. People chatter about things like holidays in Prague or Budapest and want to drink wine from these areas as a reminder of their travel. But wine is also a status thing--something to be discovered, discussed and shown off. The more exotic the better. I think that the Eastern European wine craze is a convergence of these two things. (Oh and I think there's some pretty good wine being made and now, exported to the States as well).

Of course, all of this makes me wonder: what about Bulgaria? But I guess by now this doesn't surprise you. Well, so what about Bulgaria?<!--more-->

Here's the thing, I don't know.

I see lots of Bulgarian wine in grocery stores and shops at the 6 to 20 leva range but I don't hear much discussion of wine tasting in Bulgaria. Nor do I hear much about wine outside of the under 20 leva price range.

A quick search reveals tasting at Todoroff Winery and a lot of rather questionable "food and wine tours."  One of the questionable food and wine tours has my favorite bad Bulgarian of the day... when "in 1936 Bulgaria got down under Turkish slavery."  I can only assume that Bulgaria was in fact not dancing or enjoying the "Turkish slavery" a lot but I digress.

So what's the story?

Are there wine shops in Sofia hosting Bulgarian wine tastings? Are there tasting rooms?  If a girl had a map, a car and some friends what wineries could we visit? And which ones are worth a visit?  Or if the answer is meh, wine isn't very accessible in Bulgaria--why?

Oh and as a footnote, I've been to Melnik five times in less than two years and while I like it, a girl can only go so many times to Bulgaria's smallest town.

So here's to trying new things, to learning more about Bulgarian wines (and grapes) and to enjoying spring--spring is after all the seemingly perfect time to spend a Saturday or a weekend wine tasting. Now if I only knew how to go about doing this.