Vacation feelings from Croatia

"Živjeli" means "cheers" in Croatian, and this is something you hear frequently at the Danic distillery stand in Hall 18. The family-owned company has brought 13 of its total of 22 types of schnapps. They are very well received by the visitors. "We only process particularly high-quality ingredients in our company in the Slavonia region," says Stjepan Danic. "We buy a lot of fruit and grain directly from local farmers. That way we have short distances." But Croatian beer such as Ožujsko or Karlovačko also evoke vacation memories for many trade fair visitors.

Healthy berry

Among other things, the Danics distill schnapps from the aronia berry. But the rose plant, which is actually native to North America, can do even more: The juice from the tart fruit is considered to be very rich in vitamins. The berry also tastes good as a spread. "We make tea from the dried pomace left over from juicing," explains Stjepan Danic. "There are many healthy nutrients in it as well."

Like the aronia berry, hazelnuts grow predominantly inland in Croatia. Their kernels are available at the Danic family stand pure, caramelized or with chocolate. The mini doughnuts called Fritule, which are refined with syrup, also taste sweet.

Euro instead of kuna

The fact that Croatia has been a member of the Schengen area since January 1, 2023, makes a lot of things easier for the Danic family - traveling, but also marketing their products. Since the beginning of the year, the euro has been Croatia's official currency. This will save German vacationers from having to convert during the summer. For Stjepan Danic, the changeover still takes some getting used to, but he is happy that his country now has the same currency as Germany and other EU countries.