DIY TOUR

If you want to organize your tour on your own to freely choose which gastronomic products to taste, when to organize your visits according to your rhythms or take advantage of the technical skills you already have, we recommend starting with an analysis of the local products to choose from:

• Kreatopita: the meat pie is one of the most famous typical dishes of Kefalonia and is eaten, both cold and hot, as a snack (not very light, we must admit, but definitely satisfying) or as a main course for lunch or dinner. Although everyone knows it, not everyone knows that local housewives prepared it in different variations (in Lixouri for example they use plums), all equally tasty. Pork, goat and beef are slowly cooked with onion, garlic, oregano, sapsycho (a local herb), tomato sauce and red wine. Once cooked, the meat is poured into a pan lined with homemade filo pastry. Rice is then added, the filling is covered with another layer of pastry and it is baked in the oven. This delicious savoury pie is served in almost all traditional taverns (rumours suggest in particular that of the Tzivras tavern in Argostoli and Enastron in Trapezaki) and in the bakeries of the villages but you can also try to prepare it at home with this recipe: https://www.argiro.gr/recipe/kefalonitiki-kreatopita/.
• Feta, Myzithra and Kefalotiri: livestock farming and cheese production represent an important sector of the island's economy and a glorious tradition (the first references to Kefalonian cheese appear even in Homeric poems!) that the people of Kefalonia proudly pass on. There are about a dozen companies today committed to the promotion of local dairy products, some of which have been family-run for five generations. Along with Feta, the undisputed queen of the market, other tasty cheeses are produced such as myzithra (similar to ricotta), kefalotiri (salty and semi-soft) and telemes (aged in brine) and an excellent Greek yogurt. If you want to taste local products you can turn for example to the sales point of the Galiatsatos company, near the bus station in Argostoli.
• Olive oil: Kefalonia is a large and fertile island with vast olive groves and vineyards from which excellent quality olive oil and wines are produced. Before the earthquake of 1953 there were about 200 olive presses in operation on the island. Today there are only a dozen, even though in Kefalonia there are over a million olive trees that cover almost 55% of the surface of the island. Koroneiki, Ntopia and Theiako are the main varieties of olive grown locally. Kefalonia oil has a deep green color, a rich flavour and low acidity. The harvest season lasts two to three months, starting in mid-October and continuing until mid-January. This special time of year can also be experienced by travellers interested in participating in the harvest, producing their own olive oil and watching the processing in technologically advanced mills. If an alternative holiday is not for you or you cannot take a break in autumn, you can start to get to know Kefalonia oil with a tasting at the Liocharis oil mill in Keramies, awarded with prestigious international recognitions.
• Honey: thanks to its incredible wealth of flowers and plants, Kefalonia is a small paradise for bees. There are around 400 beekeepers on the island, including small businesses and private individuals, for a total production of around 70 tons of honey, especially pine, thyme and multi-flower honey. Some companies, such as Dias Beekeeping in Domata, offer the possibility (by appointment) to walk through their apiary accompanied by an expert and, with the appropriate work clothing, to observe the hives and bees up close, concluding the visit with at the laboratory with a tasting.
• Mandola and mandolato: mandola is a traditional sweet typical of the Ionian Islands and is one of the most famous typical products of Kefalonia. This delicacy is made of almonds and sugar and has a distinctive deep red colour created with an edible alga. The name of this sweet comes from the Italian word “mandorla”, incorporated into the local language during the Venetian occupation. Mandolato also has the same semantic and cultural origin. During the Venetian occupation, this sweet made of almonds, honey, sugar and egg whites whipped until they formed a meringue was a delicacy intended especially for the aristocrats of the region. You can buy these sweets for yourself or as souvenirs for friends and family in many supermarkets and shops but we recommend you to buy them in traditional workshops such as Sesoulas or Voskopoula in Argostoli for a more authentic and inebriating experience.
• Robola, Mavrodaphne and Muscat: Kefalonia has a long tradition of winemaking but it was during the Venetian period that grape growing became of great importance. One of the greatest legacies of the Venetians is the Robola grape, which despite being difficult to grow on the island’s rocky, limestone soil has become synonymous with Kefalonia. Dry whites made from this grape variety are served in every tavern and restaurant on the island and exported worldwide thanks to the efforts of the Robola Cooperative, a group of around 300 winemakers based mostly on the Omala plane and the western slopes of Mount Ainos. If you visit in August, don’t miss the traditional festival held in Fragata to celebrate the pressing of the first grapes of the season! Kefalonia also grows Mavrodaphne, which produces deep ruby ​​red and rosé wines, and Muscat, which produces dessert wines made from dried raisins. Many wineries are open to the public and offer tastings and tours of their vineyards. We particularly recommend Orealios Gaea in the Omala Valley, Sarris Winery near Avithos Beach, Sclavos Wines on the Paliki Peninsula, Gentilini Winery in the Minies area.
• Beer: Kefalonian Beer is the first microbrewery in Kefalonia and Ithaca and is a family-run business with a production of around 40 tons per year and a mainly local distribution. With its two variants (Premium Lager and Red Ale) it can be found in many bars, taverns and shops in Kefalonia, Lefkada, Zakynthos and Athens. All the raw materials used for production are Greek except for hops, imported from abroad because, according to the owners, the product available in Greece unfortunately does not meet the established standards. By appointment, it is possible to visit the production facilities to learn about the different types of beer and their production processes and finally enjoy an on-site tasting to judge the quality of the products firsthand.

GUIDED TOUR

Choosing an organized tour allows you to plan your activities in advance and comfortably, to know exactly the costs to be faced and avoid unforeseen events on site that can change the travel program. Relying on an agency means having support in your language (without extra costs) during the selection and booking process and a local guide can offer cultural and historical insights that you would otherwise not have access to. There are two options we can offer to food and wine enthusiasts:

• Greek cooking lessons: Why not discover the secrets of Greek cuisine and take home with you, in addition to the memories, also the skills needed to recreate tasty dishes capable of evoking flavours, aromas and memories of the land of the gods? In a wonderful organic farm with a vegetable garden, fruit trees and aromatic herbs you can try your hand at preparing traditional recipes with fresh local products, perhaps sipping a glass of local wine or a cold drink. You can also buy zero-mile products, from aromatic herbs to delicious spoon desserts typical of the island, to take home with you unique and high-quality souvenirs.
• Food tour: A private tasting tour of a few hours can be the ideal solution for those who do not have a car to travel with, have little time on the island or want a personalized experience, far from commercial contexts and attentive to any diets, particular dietary regimes or intolerances. The food tour takes place in Argostoli and includes tasting different dishes, wines and desserts in the company of a local guide trained to make travellers discover not only the ingredients used in traditional recipes and the family-run taverns unknown to most, but also the hospitality that makes a holiday in Kefalonia so special and memorable.