One year later: Sketches of Europe's Northwest

Precisely one year ago I embarked upon one of the most exciting trips in my life. I called it "Sketches of Europe's Northwest" and published something between a photostory and a diary on Facebook, in the context of Brexit. At long last I found the time to compile all Facebook posts and Instagram pictures from the trip in one place and I'm offering them here. It was an unforgettable experience. Maybe it is even better that I am putting this together now, one year later, because it gave me the chance to go over these moments again. Captions are above each image. Click on image for larger version. Enjoy!

Travelling to Paris, France from Sofia International Airport.

19 August 2016 · Sofia

I am off to Paris, Belfast, Bristol and Cornwall on a ten-day trip which I am dubbing #SketchesOfEuropesNorthwest. I am going to cross from the hot, dry, yellow, azure, summery Southeast of the continent to the lush, green, grey, humid and refreshing Northwest. Two diametrically opposed but complementary faces of our cherished common European space - now rattled by a perfect storm of internal and external challenges.

The issue of Brexit cannot but be my silent companion along the way. After all, it is one of the secret reasons for which I chose to head northwest in the midst of an exuberant Balkan summer. Does Paris actually care about Brexit; is it simply gloating or it can’t wait to assume financial powers from London? What about the future of the Good Friday Agreement for Northern Ireland? Do unionists in the country regret voting to remain in the EU, now that there is renewed talk of a united island by nationalists? The Southwest of England: Bristol, home of some of my favourite musicians, massively elected to Remain (62%); nearby Cornwall saw a 56% Leave vote. Why so?

Apart from just exploring novel and long-yearned corners of Auld Europe, the restless type that I am, it is the simple, human answers to the above questions that I will be looking for, in word and in image. Stay tuned!

DiVino.Taste 2016: The "post-truth"

So it finally came - the sixth issue of the biggest and most admired exhibition of Bulgarian wines: DiVino.Taste. It is almost over now (due to end on Sunday) but I am eager to share impressions and recommendations from my Saturday afternoon visit.

I had a vague plan in my mind on how to approach this year's tasting, given the overwhelming number of wineries and wines to be shown (73 wineries, some 500 wines in total): go for favourite regions - Northwest, Struma Valley, Danube Plain; then go for favourite wineries in the remaining regions - Thracian Lowlands, Sakar, Black Sea. White wines and rosés first, reds on the second tour. Yes but the organisation of the stands was a bit messy, though regions had specific colours assigned to them, so I dived into stand No. 1 and went all the way through 72, skipping wineries (about one-third of them) which did not interest me.

Several conclusions (specific wines listed at the end):

IRIS publishes second of its kind study on human security threats in Bulgaria

My organisation, the Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS), has published today a second of its kind study on human security threats in Bulgaria. It is authored by IRIS′s expert and Sofia University professor Stoycho P. Stoychev and is part of the efforts of the Citizens′ Network for Human Security (cn4hs) for the Balkans and Turkey as part of a project supported by the European Commission. I am author of the introductions in Bulgarian and the English summaries.

This year′s study comprises two parts: a novel, qualitative research component on prostitution and the sexual services market in Bulgaria and the existing threats to human security of the people involved in it, focusing among other things on the changes that have occurred after a similar such study conducted in 2010; and a quantitative research component on the impact which the so-called controlled vote phenomenon in Bulgaria has on human security, building upon a qualitative study on the issue which IRIS’s team implemented in the first phase of the current project (2014).

Please take a look at the announcement on the official IRIS website and find there links to the comprehensive texts in Bulgarian and the English summaries.

Protests and Plenums: Bosnia's Civic Awakening and Youth Participation

Image: Wikimedia Commons (http://ow.ly/4nbV6q) 

My paper on Bosnia's civil movements in 2012-14, the unique form of direct democracy that ensued - the plenums - and the role of the young in all that is available here. It was written for the book Good Governance and Youth, ed. Dr Melanie Sully, published by the Institute for Go-Governance in Vienna.

The 4 shames of the Dutch referendum on Ukraine

The Netherlands on Wednesday voted in a consultative (but nevertheless significant and potentially disruptive) referendum on whether the European Union should ratify the Association Agreement with Ukraine. Turnout was 32%, and 64% of those who cast a ballot voted against the Ukraine deal. I have just four points on that:

1) It's not a shame that a 20% radicalised anti-European minority (of those having the right to vote) voted the way it did. It's their right. It's a shame a 80% majority was silent and sleepwalked through this important referendum, letting a weird coalition of populists, radicals and animal rights activists to beat them.

2) It's a shame that the same Association Agreement, for which the 130 of Euromaidan gave their lives in 2013-14, was crossed out with such a maddening levity by the Dutch, founders of the EU and among the greatest proponents of its values.

3) It's a shame that few people in the Netherlands on Wednesday remembered the Malaysian flight MH17 airplane crash over Ukraine on 17 July 2014 which sent hundreds of their kin to their deaths. The Russian BUK missile had been aimed back then, symbolically, at the same EU choice of Ukraine which the Dutch rejected lightheartedly yesterday.

4) And it's a shame that a trade-loving nation as the Netherlands, with a huge tradition of encouraging and exploiting free commerce with the rest of the world for centuries on end, voted against what is essentially a trade and cooperation deal with another European nation.

It's a shame.

След бламирането на конституционната реформа на Хр. Иванов

Кунева и Лукарски мълчат като риби, гербаджийте и Патриотичният фронт нагло се подсмиват, а Първановите руски мекерета отявлено триумфират. ДПС нямат някакво специално поведение, а БСП не знаят какво да кажат. Това видях досега, към 20.00 ч.на 9 декември 2015 г., след провала на "историческия компромис" за съдебната власт.

Да, все още няма реакция на ДБГ след бламирането на реформата на Христо Иванов, както и на СДС и на другите сили в Реформаторския блок (РБ) - освен въпросната оставка на правосъдния министър и безапелационните изявления на Радан Кънев и Гроздан Караджов (ДСБ) за прекратяване на подкрепата им за правителството "Борисов II".

За РБ ми е мисълта. Всъщност аз и партията на Кунева сме толкова различни (въпреки че съм гласувал за нея в рамките на Блока в моя избирателен район в името на солидарността), че най-естественото нещо е те да си останат във властта да проветряват на Бойко подмишниците пред Европа, Кунева като истински евробюрократ да е на власт, ама нищо да не зависи от нея, а аз и Радан и Гроздан и нормалните хора в тоя град и държава да сме опозиция. Това още от stunner-a Мая Манолова - омбудсман. Лично мнение, не ангажирам никого. Просто ме е яд на тия процеси, които се забелязваха от лятото, ранното.

За мен като избирател на РБ - ако ДБГ, СДС и останалите партии от Блока не вземат решение за излизане от управлението - вече не е важно тази формация да оцелява. Въпреки огромния потенциал, който имаше. В крайна сметка принципите са по-важни от черупката. Съдържанието е по-важно от формата.

Поздравления за Христо Иванов и благодарности за свършеното от него. Благодарности и на Реформаторския блок за това, че известно време все пак олицетворяваше нещо като надежда за българската политика и общество. Нещо, родено в гражданското общество - автентичното.

Невъзможната лекота на Бургундия

Morey-Saint-Denis

Боже, кога за последно пих Бургундия? Декември месец в Ню Йорк, когато Пифа извади Gevrey-Chambertin от 1999. Мокри чорапи и мед. A godsent. Това сега тук пред мен е Gevrey-Chambertin на Philippe Leclerc, 1er Cru les Combeaux Moines, 2011. Flashback, flashback. Мозъкът щрака, щрака. Не се бърка този аромат, тази мекост, тази топлота надолу по гърлото. Наоколо е чудо на чудесата. Леката и невъзможна, приказна Бургундия, е тук пред мен. Есенна, жълто-оранжево-кафява, мъглива, слънчева, аристоркратична, дъбова, плесенясала, подземна, лазурна, чиста, скъпа, отворена, твоя.

Gevrey-Chambertin. Nuits-Saint-Georges. Vosne-Romanee. Savigny-les-Beaune. Имена на селца като от приказка. Всяко дава и вино с контролиран географски произход с марка – името на селцето. Митични, магически за любителя на вино, както Сен Мориц и Шамони за скиорите или Монте Карло и Лас Вегас за любителите на хазартните игри. Да, виното е тръпка и мания, пристрастяваш се – към вселената, която то носи със себе си. А Бургундия и нейните селца, лозя, разделени от каменни зидове, хората ѝ – тя е върховния източник и цел на тази мания. Аз вече в това съм убеден, след този сюблимен есенен уикенд в чутовното пространство между Дижон и Бон, наречено Кот д'Ор – северната и най-великолепна част на Бургундия.

Новият дуализъм на Сърбия: повече прагматизъм?

Мой коментар за актуалните обществени и политически процеси в Сърбия е достъпен на сайта на ИРМИ.

Elusive Identity: Duality and Missed Opportunities in Bulgarian Foreign Policy in the Black Sea Region

The Sofia Platform has published the collection of policy papers, Unrewarding Crossroads? The Black Sea Region amidst the European Union and Russia (eds. Anahit Shirinyan and Louisa Slavkova). My contribution, entitled "Elusive Identity: Duality and Missed Opportunities in Bulgarian Foreign Policy in the Black Sea Region", is available here.

To Gotham and Back Again: Един трип до Ню Йорк (и Бостън)

Не бях планирал ходене до Ню Йорк. Но то се случи след спонтанна уговорка с Петар Гошев, стар софийски другар, един летен ден на септември в София да разцепим The Big Apple за Нова година. За съжаление на мен и на Гошев, на него не му дадоха виза (държавата САЩ си има свои разбирания за туристи и потенциални емигранти), но аз отидох - за петнайсетина дни, от средата на Коледа до началото на януари, на гости на приятели. Това е един софийски разказ за Ню Йорк. С него искам да ви накарам да отворите съответните уебстраници, да запазите самолетни билети и да посветите една-две седмици от живота си на този град. По възможност с отскачане до Бостън.

Gotham е имагинерния град от филмите за Батман, но нюйоркчани обичат да наричат града си така. Според мен звучи добре, макар че градът далеч не е така noir. Но я има тази непредвиденост и наситеност във всяко нещо, екстремностите на черно и бяло; синьо и зелено; на вятър и слънце и сняг; на пари и бедност; Среден Манхатън (Midtown Manhattan) vs. Бушуик (Bushwick) в Бруклин; джаз за двайсетина човека в Уест Вилидж (West Village) и електронно парти за пет хиляди в склад на Нюйоркската полиция (NYPD) в Уилямсбърг (Williamsburg); най-добрите барове и ресторанти в света и най-лошите хотдози ever. Gotham. Или просто Ню Йорк Сити.

Отидох за ден и половина и до Бостън, Нова Англия. Нямам много впечатления, но според мен си струва пак да отида. Уважих кампусите на най-добрите университети в света, истински омари и отлични комбинации между ирландско уиски и местен ейл. Бостън е само на четири часа с автобус от Ню Йорк.

Homo Civicus (Re)Born: The 2012-14 Protest Movements in Bulgaria and Good Governance

"Bulgarian Protest against Oresharski Cabinet" by AlexaHR.

With Phone CameraPreviously published: No where.

Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bulgarian_Protest_against_Oresharski_Cabinet.jpg

#/media/File:Bulgarian_Protest_against_Oresharski_Cabinet.jpg

My paper on Bulgaria's 2012-14 protest movements and their impact on good governance is available here. It's part of the book Governance and Participation, ed. Dr Melanie Sully, on recent developments in the Black Sea region, published by the Institute for Go-Governance in Vienna.

A Syrah from the North

Now, Syrah made a famous debut in Bulgaria in the late 2000s when the first vines planted five or so years before by newly founded small wineries bore fruit. These vines have mostly been in the Southeast Thracian Valley region - Sakar mountain, Haskovo, Sliven, Yambol, etc. The debut was famous because Syrah and Bulgaria turned out to be in a love affair, with wines coming out of the Thracian Valley conquering palates domestically and kicking butt in international blind tasting competitions. Syrah came to Bulgaria earlier in fact: in the 1940s, here an unthought-of fusion was made between the French Northern Rhone grape of Syrah and the Italian king grape Nebbiolo of Piedmont to produce Rubin - a Bulgarian-invented variety which is still grown and produces fabulous wines. But we got to know Syrah for its own merits on Bulgarian soil only recently, with the advent of the new millennium.

The Thracian Valley Syrahs of Katarzhyna, Minkov Brothers and Santa Sarah are famous. But what I had today, and excuse me for the long overture, is simply amazing. This Syrah comes from the North - from the Danube Plain. Our wines from this region are typically more cold-climate, light- to medium-bodied and fresh. A typical example is Gamza. But this Chateau Burgozone Syrah justifies all my spontaneous love lately for the versatility of Bulgaria's Northwest: this is a must-try, quite big Syrah for Bulgarian wine lovers who are already acquainted with the Thracian Valley treasures but want something different. Chateau Burgozone is situated on the banks of the Danube some 200 km north of Sofia.

I let this Chateau Burgozone 2011 Syrah PGI Danube Plain breathe for 45 minutes. The nose is plum and ripe mulberry and raisins. On the palate the mulberry is reinforced, within a general black fruit background. What is striking is the clearly discernible smokiness - leather, tobacco - and bayleaf. The classic Syrah spiciness here has a different dimension. This even reminds me of the smoky South African Syrahs/Shirazes. At the same time, the balance is amazing - the freshness is just about right to make this wine perfect for any Balkan meal.

Recommend.

Предизборно: Листа на Реформаторския блок за 25-и МИР София

Листата с кратко био за всеки кандидат можете да свалите тук. 25-и многомандатен избирателен район - София включва районите Люлин, Банкя, Овча купел, Красна поляна, Илинден, Надежда, Връбница и Нови Искър.

EP 2014 elections in Bulgaria: A hint at normality?

Bulgaria’s Central Election Commission is yet to announce the official final results of the European Parliament (EP) election held on 25 May, 2014, but it has processed all protocols from the precincts with counted 100% of the ballots. This was the third EP campaign in Bulgaria after the one following EU entry in 2007 and then the regular one in 2009. Turnout was traditionally low (some 35%) and somewhere on the average in Europe.

"The Frenzy"

A great take on EU migration and the Bulgaria/Romania worker invasion scare by Foreign Policy's Harriet Salem, with me quoted, too. Read it here.

Christmas line-up: check!

From left to right: 2012 Minkov Brothers Le Photographe Syrah (Gold Medal winner in blind tasting at Alliances du Monde 2013), Thracian Valley, Bulgaria; 2009 Chateau Ste Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon, Columbia Valley, Washington State, U.S.; 2007 Domaine Duclaux, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Southern Rhone, France; 2007 Ruschi Noceti La Costa Rosso, Tuscany, Italy; 2008 Stellenzicht Golden Triangle Pinotage, Stellenbosch, South Africa. Yum yum!

Reflections on Ukraine

I attended on Thursday a public discussion in Sofia entitled, “Ukraine's Struggle for Europe: Mapping Ukraine’s Choices before the Protests and after Vilnius.” It was held at the European Commission Representation in Bulgaria and organised by the Centre for Liberal Strategies (CLS). The key speaker was Mr Valentyn Gladkykh, a young political scientist who is currently Chief Adviser of Verkhovna Rada's Secretariat; the other two panellists were Ognyan Minchev of IRIS, the policy institute I work at, and Lithuania’s Ambassador to Bulgaria, H.E. Darius Gaidys, representing the EU Presidency. Moderation was provided by CLS’s Antoinette Primatarova.

                 Photo by Nessa Gnatoush, Wikimedia Commons / Flickr (bit.ly/18Gm4lx)

This was a very useful event which got its due attention, judging by the people present, but it also helped some ideas I had about Ukraine, the EU, Russia, and the Euromaidan protests crystallise. Here are some thoughts:

New policy brief: "U-turns and Ways forward: Armenia, the EU and Russia beyond Vilnius"

Take a look here at my fresh policy brief, co-authored with Anahit Shirinyan and entitled "U-turns and Ways forward: Armenia, the EU and Russia beyond Vilnius." It was published on the website of the Institute for Regional and International Studies (IRIS).

Tasting the glass

I hate to write about a company but I can’t escape it here. I went to an event organised by Riedel, the glassware maker, in Sofia’s Grand Hotel on this pleasant October Wednesday. What captured my attention in the promotion email was that by signing in for the tasting at the price of 15 levs (€7.50) I’d get attractive discounts for buying three of my favourite wines from a favourite wine retailer. It’s Burgundy, Washington State and Australia, geographically. The wines which Riedel chose were: Joseph Drouhin Santenay 2009; Chateau Ste Michelle Cabernet Sauvignon 2009; Yalumba Patchwork Shiraz 2010.

But this thing grew to something bigger than the wine. I admit I never expected the shape of the glass can have such a profound effect on the sensual perception of the drinker. Maybe there is also the marketing and the psychological tricks, but I definitely believe Riedel has a point. No wonder their glasses cost a fortune (€85 for the set of three used in this tasting, regular price; sold at discount at the event for €30). These people made their glasses as the wine itself would want them to be made, as they like to boast. Mr Riedel had that idea back in 1973 and tested it among the most renowned wine producers in Italy. It was them who chose the form of glassware for their own wine. And it’s not only wine. Riedel has glassware adjusted to enhance any imaginable drink, even Bulgarian rakia. But enough about the company, let’s shift to the event.

                              Glass 1 - Pinot Noir; 2 - Syrah; 3 - Cabernet Sauvignon

A meet with the Prokupac

Time has come for my serious meet with Prokupac. It is a native Serbian red variety mostly grown in the central part of the country. In Bulgaria, we never associate Serbia with wine, and when we do we think white: Smederevka or Karlovački Rizling at the Exit Fest in Novi Sad, or Krstač  for those spending more time in the country, for that matter.

I tried a number of Prokupac wines in my Serbia travels over the last year. I was impressed by the combination of vigour, elegance and rusticity. Of course, it's different when you're home and the wine you chose to buy is all now at your disposal for a serious scrutiny.

I am trying the 2011 Prokupac by Vinarija Ivanović, Aleksandrovac, 14%. I bought the wine in Belgrade in May of this year but waited for the autumn to settle over the Balkans in order to try it in the more appropriate of atmospheres. This is medium to light bodied and quite the choice for September or even August, if we have to fall for those season/wine considerations. But it's 6 degrees centigrade in Sofia now, and the juice is just perfect. It displays wild plum, raspberry and redcurrant on the nose, and a bit of oak. I decanted it and waited for only half-hour for this, but for a 2011 Prokupac I think it's okay. On the palate the acidity is pleasing; it's again the redcurrant. What makes this special is the saltiness and the coffee nuance in the aftertaste. Rustic, red Balkan openness on a powerful display.