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The Vinol association was founded in 2001 and has successfully restored the traditional connections between wine and olive producers from Bertoki, Čežarji, Pobegi and Sv. Anton. In Istria the wine industry has ancient roots; in fact on the Šavrin hills there has always been sweet grape from which an excellent wine is produced, while the olive oil coming from this location has been always well known all over Europe. In the small village of Pobegi, just nearby Koper, at the end of the 19. century, on the 31st of january 1895, a consumer and loan association was founded. They payed a rent and were tenants for eight years, until in 1903 the 54 members bought the land in this “place so beautiful that none around here comes close” and built the Narodni dom (Popular House). These righteous members, that fought for their national as well as economical existance, founded the first ever association wine cellar somewhere around the beginning of WW1. The tradition of the consumer association was abandoned in the periond between both wars, but has come alive again, today, with the help of the Vinol association of wine and olive oil producers. The association counts 50 members that truly want to enhance the visibility and knowledge of the places they live in, and are especially proud of the many local & traditional events and fairs or exhibitions they organize. Each Spring they organize the Wines & Olve Oils Tasting, in autumn the Bendima (grape-harvest), which marks the official opening of grape picking. They often collectively visit fairs and attend other presentations in Slovenia and abroad. The Vinol members have won numerous awards for their work, thus gaining recognition all over Europe and neighbouring countries. One of the goals of the association is to bring to life the old tradition of Ciper plantations, which is one of the now forgotten autochthonous wine vines, that yields a strong, aromatic, and rose scented red wine. The friendly people of the Šavrin area in the valley between the Rižana river, Vanganel and Potok love to invite tourists to their homes and farms, situated along clearly marked routes. Along with a glass of good wine and excellent olive oil you will most certainly be greeted by a slice of excellent local dried ham (prosciutto, here named “pršut”), fresh fruit, and moreover good spirits and many fascinating stories written through the centuries by the hard, but fascinating life in Istria.