Kırklareli to host harvest festival featuring hardaliye beverage

Kırklareli is preparing to host the 17th Yayla Abundance, Fertility, Harvest, and Grape Harvest Festival from September 4 to 6. The event aims to highlight the region's viticulture heritage and local gastronomic richness.

A central focus of the festival is hardaliye, a geographically indicated, non-alcoholic traditional beverage made from ripe grape juice, black mustard seeds, and cherry leaves. The drink gained historical significance when Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, during a visit to Kırklareli in 1930, praised it and reportedly instructed that it be made into a “national beverage.”

Local authorities and producers intend to use the festival to increase the brand value of hardaliye and promote the city's culinary potential. The three-day program will include regional harvest rituals, tastings, and various cultural activities.