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The Turkish Wine Holiday Not on Most Calendars: Kalecik Karası Day

 

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This past Sunday, August 23 was Kalecik Karası Day. While I’ve written about Kalecik Karası—the grape and the wines—any number of times, I thought it would be nice to revisit this grape and what it, and the wine holiday, mean for the Turkish wine industry. 

Kalecik Karası

There’s been a push over the last handful of years to resurrect Turkey’s native grapes. While this new movement is mainly led by a couple wineries (namely Paşaeli, Gelveri, Likya) more and more jump on the bandwagon every year. One might propose though, that the first winery to make a big impact in this campaign was Tomurcukbağ…and that was even before it was a winery. I covered that and others details about the grape in my Get to Know the Grape: Kalecik Karası post. Rather than rehashing that, let’s jump into why Kalecik Karası is so important to the wine industry. 

We have over 1,400 grapes in Turkey, many (possibly most?) are unique to the country. While a mere fraction of that number is used in winemaking, it still creates a landscape of flavor that cannot be found elsewhere. What then makes any particular grape more important to the industry than any other?

Often likened to Pinot Noir, Kalecik Karası produces silky, elegant wines (and stunning traditional method sparkling wines) that have great ageing potential. Yet it’s not the grape’s profile that gives it gravitas. Kalecik Karası is a success story; a big one at that. The industry still leans very heavily on international grape varieties for a lot of reasons, one of which being that we know people drink Cabernet Sauvignon and that Chardonnay sells. 

Making wine in Turkey is (increasingly) expensive, (increasingly) fraught with legal hoops and pitfalls, and (increasingly) difficult to sell as the economy tanks. Making Syrah is much more of a sure thing than making, say, Mecediye. Kalecik Karası, now planted in most of Turkey’s wine regions, proves that a rare, local grape can not only make great wine, but that it can sell, it can be successful, and that it can compete on the international stage. 

There’s a great devotion—deservedly—here to Kalecik Karası. Maybe that’s why it’s the first Turkish grape to get a holiday.

Wine Holidays

Whether or not you knew it before, there are wine holidays throughout the year that celebrate specific grapes, wine styles, regions, historic wine days, etc. Some are internationally observed, others are more specific to one country or another. Deeply annoyingly, not all of them fall on a specific date. Like American Thanksgiving and bank holidays, they float around the calendar as the second Thursday of month X or the fourth Friday of month Y. Makes it very difficult to keep track of them all.

If you Google “wine holidays,” multiple websites pop up, usually with calendars that are either conflicting or with more or fewer holidays listed. Of course Kalecik Karası Day hasn’t made it onto any of the international calendars. Because I love you so much, I looked through a bunch and consolidated them below. 

Also, look for an Asterix* below to mark grapes/styles found in Turkey should you want to celebrate any of these yourself.

January

• 10 January – Champagne and Fries Day (Yes! It’s a real holiday created by my friend Unraveling Wine)

February

• 1 February - International Furmint Day*
• 16 February - International Syrah Day*
• 18 February - Global Drink Wine Day
• Last Saturday in February – Open That Bottle Night 

March

• 3 March - International Mulled Wine Day
• 13 March - International Riesling Day*
• 21 March - World Vermouth Day

April

• 14 April - Tannat Day*
• 17 April - World Malbec Day*
• 26th April – International Qvevri Day*
• 27 April - World Marselan Day*
• Last Friday of April – International Viognier Day*

May

• First Friday of May - International Sauvignon Blanc Day*
• 9 May - World Moscato Day
• 17 May - Pinot Grigio Day*
• Thursday before US Memorial Day  International Chardonnay Day *
• 24 May 2026 – Judgment of Paris Anniversary
• 25 May 2026 – National Wine Day (US)

June

• First Saturday of June – National Bubbly Day (US)
• Beginning the first Saturday – Sparkling Wine Week
• First Thursday or second Friday of June (depending on whose calendar you follow) World Verdejo Day 
• Second Saturday – National Rosé Day (US)
• Third Saturday - Drink Chenin Blanc Day
• Third Saturday to last Sunday – English Wine Week
• 21 June - World Lambrusco Day

July

• Second Sunday – International Cava Day
• Fourth Thursday – Shiraz Day* 
• Fourth Friday – International Rosé Day
• 25 July – National Wine & Cheese Day (US)

August

• 1 August – World Albariño Day*
• 4 August – National White Wine Day (US)
• 13 August - International Prosecco Day
• 18 August - International Pinot Noir Day*
• 23 August Kalecik Karası Day*
• 28 August 2026 – National Red Wine Day (US)

September

• 1 September - Cap Classique Day
• First Thursday - International Cabernet Sauvignon Day *
• First Friday - National Chianti Day 
• 10 September - National Port Day
• Third Friday - International Grenache Day*

October

• 5 October – World Vranec Day
• 6 October – Orange Wine Day*
• Second Saturday - International Pinotage Day 
• 14 October – Prokupac Day
• Fourth Friday - World Champagne Day 
• 26 October - International Mavrud Day*
• Last Thursday - International Carignan Day *

November

• First full week – Sherry Week
• 1 November - International Xinomavro Day*
• 7 November - International Merlot Day* (There’s even a play list!)
• 8 November – Wine in Moderation Day
• Second Thursday - International Tempranillo Day *
• Third Wednesday – Zinfandel Day*
• Third Thursday - Beaujolais Nouveau Day 
• 24 November - International Carménère Day*
• 30 November – International Saperavi Day*

December

• 1 December – International Maratheftiko Day
• 4 December - International Cabernet Franc Day*
• 10 December - World Aszú Day
• 16 December - Pinot Meunier Day*

Kalecik Karası Day

We’re a few days late for it this year, but you should absolutely put it on your calendar for next year. Popular as it is, there are any number of Kalecik Karası wines in all manner of styles with which to celebrate the day. It’s a highly food-friendly grape as well. Since the holiday is August, think grilled foods. Mushroom-forward dishes are always great with Kalecik Karası. It also does well with savory fruit dishes and foods flavored with nar ekşisi.

If you want to explore Turkish wine or any of the plethora of Turkish grapes mentioned here more deeply, get a copy of the second edition of my book: The Essential Guide to Turkish Wine! If you already have the book but think maybe you’d like larger versions of the infographics…good news!! You can get digital downloads of all of the infographics!