Maribor - a city surrounded by beauty – part VII

This time we’re heading off to a special part in the beginning of the River Pesnica valley, to a place, where at the Austrian border the hills of Slovenske gorice begin and where grapes are grown with the power of the heart!
 
When last time we descended the tops to the north, we were going towards Kungota and were at the beginning of this tour, with centuries old farmhouses, where you can taste the home made cuisine and arrive to the once main road connecting Maribor with Graz in Austria.
 
From the border crossing at Jurij, with the church of Sveti Jurij (St. George) is one of the offspring of the oldest vine in the world (and you can find accommodations in the village in one of the guest houses), and here you’ll start (or finish – if you’ve started on the other side in Zgornja Velka – which we presented at the beginning of our trips around Maribor) your way on the Slovenian Wine-road number 19.

From here you’ll pass Grušena toward Špičnik, where there’s a real concentration of wine cellars offering world class quality wine and the actual and former wine queens. From top of the hill, at the statue of St. George, you’ll see why they say this wine comes from the heart.
 
But that aside, you will not be certain when you’ve passed over to the Austrian side, for ever since both countries are in the Schengen zone, the border has disappeared, just like it was in the times of horse drawn carriages transporting wine barrels towards the capital of the empire, which explains the cellars and mansions on the way in the settlements that seem fairly small for today’s standards.

Over Slatina, with the viticulture museum of Kebl, you’ll come to Svečina, a place currently known as the home of Maja Keuc – our representative in the 2011 Eurosong contest. Otherwise this is a home village of dr. Andrej Perlah, who was, as a physic and astronomer, a rector of the university of Vienna  at the time the emperor still believed you can only use Slovenian language to talk to horses.

And from here, I believe your day will be full enough, that we’ll continue the next time and finish the north-western excursion from the center of Maribor.