Welcome to Wine Square – a place where the history of Irig, the winemaking tradition of Fruška Gora and the modern life of this small Srem town come together.
At first sight, the square may appear to be a quiet passage between rows of old houses. Yet its pavements remember a time when Irig was an important commercial and craft centre of Srem. Merchants, craftsmen, travellers and people from the surrounding villages met here. Goods were exchanged, business agreements were made, news was shared and stories became part of the town’s everyday life.
This area was once known as Fishmongers’ Square. Although Irig is not situated on a river, during the nineteenth century it became famous for its remarkable supply of fresh fish. Fish were brought from the Danube and Sava rivers and sold to the people of Irig, neighbouring settlements and the monasteries of Fruška Gora. The nearby Fishmongers’ Cross still preserves the memory of this historic market and is presented at a separate station of this audio guide.
As time passed, both the square and the life of the community changed. Fish merchants gradually gave way to grape growers and winemakers, while wine became one of the most recognisable symbols of Irig.
Irig’s position on the southern slopes of Fruška Gora provides favourable conditions for growing grapevines. Vineyards, orchards and wine cellars have shaped the landscape, economy and customs of this region for centuries. Working in the vineyards was never merely an occupation. It was a family tradition, a way of life and a body of knowledge passed from one generation to the next.
The winemaking history of Irig was not always easy. At the end of the nineteenth century, phylloxera, a destructive vine pest, devastated almost all the vineyards in this area. Nevertheless, grape growing was eventually restored. In 1929, the Fruška Gora Fruit-Growing and Wine-Growing Cooperative was established, and a large wine cellar was constructed in Irig the following year. This marked the beginning of a new chapter in local wine production and the revival of the town’s viticultural tradition.
The square acquired its modern appearance through reconstruction and its transformation into a pedestrian and wine-oriented area. The renovated square and Wine Street were officially opened on 14 February 2014, the feast day of Saint Tryphon, traditionally honoured as the patron saint of vineyards, grape growers and winemakers. Motifs of grapes, wine and fish incorporated into the paving and design connect the two principal identities of this historic urban space.
Today, Wine Square is a place for meeting, walking and hosting cultural and tourism events. It reminds us that tradition does not exist only in museums or old books. It remains alive when people gather, share knowledge, preserve their customs and give them new meaning.
As you walk through the square, observe the façades, gateways and old houses around you. Imagine the former market stalls, the voices of merchants and the movement of a busy trading day. Then imagine vineyard workers returning from the slopes of Fruška Gora with grapes that would soon be transformed into wine.
Wine Square is a place where the past did not disappear. It simply changed its form – from a fish market and trading street into a public space that now preserves and presents the wine heritage of Irig.
