Discover the living traditions of Transylvania—from the grape harvest and homemade wine to zacuscă, murături, magiun and the winter traditions of the Romanian village
There is something magical about autumn in Transylvania.
The forests begin to turn gold.
The hills change color.
The mornings become cooler.
The days grow shorter.
And throughout the villages, something else begins to happen.
People get to work.
Autumn in Transylvania is not simply a beautiful season to admire from a distance.
It is a season of harvest, preparation, preservation and tradition.
Grapes are gathered.
Wine is made.
Plums become jam—and sometimes țuică.
Vegetables are roasted, chopped, salted, fermented and preserved.
Jars are filled and stored.
Cabbage is prepared for winter.
Pickles are put away.
And the flavors of summer are carefully saved for the cold months ahead.
Then, as December approaches, another important tradition arrives: families gather for the traditional winter pig slaughter and Pomana porcului, the communal meal that follows.
For generations, these activities were not simply culinary traditions.
They were part of knowing that winter was coming—and the family would be ready.
That is one of the things that makes autumn such a fascinating time to experience Transylvania.
And there may be no better place to experience it than from a small historic village like Richis.
At The Inn at Richis, autumn isn’t simply a season.
It is part of The Spirit of Richis.
Autumn Begins With the Harvest
In much of modern life, we have become disconnected from where our food comes from.
We go to a supermarket.
We buy what we need.
We put it in the refrigerator.
And tomorrow, we can do it all over again.
The traditional Transylvanian village developed around a very different rhythm.
Summer produced.
Autumn gathered.
Winter consumed.
And spring began again.
The harvest was therefore much more than collecting food.
It was preparation for the months ahead.
Families harvested vegetables, fruits, grapes and other produce while the fields, gardens and orchards were still abundant.
Then came the work of turning that abundance into something that could last.
This is one reason autumn in the Romanian countryside feels so different.
The season has a purpose.
The Grape Harvest
One of the most beautiful autumn traditions in Transylvania is the grape harvest.
For centuries, vineyards have been part of the cultural landscape of the region.
When September and October arrive, grapes begin their journey from vineyard to cellar.
The harvest is physical work.
Clusters of grapes are cut from the vines.
They are gathered into baskets and containers.
The fruit is sorted.
And then the grapes begin their transformation.
From vineyard…
to juice…
to wine.
The work varies from household to household and vineyard to vineyard, but the principle is timeless.
Harvest what the land has given you.
Then preserve it.
Share it.
Enjoy it.
And prepare for the next season.
For visitors, the grape harvest provides a glimpse into a part of Transylvania that is easy to miss when traveling only between major tourist attractions.
You are not simply looking at vineyards.
You are seeing a tradition that connects landscape, food, family and celebration.
Making Romanian Wine
Wine has always been about more than the finished bottle.
It is about the place where the grapes were grown.
The people who harvested them.
The work that transformed them.
And the time required for them to become something more.
In a traditional setting, grape harvest is followed by crushing and pressing, fermentation and eventually storage.
The cellar becomes an important part of the process.
And in Transylvania, wine cellars have long been places where wine is stored—but also places where people gather.
That connection between wine and hospitality is still very much alive.
At The Inn at Richis, wine is part of the experience we want our guests to discover.
Our historic wine cellar gives guests a chance to step into that world.
The cellar is not simply a place where bottles are kept.
It is part of the story.
A place where history, wine and conversation come together.
And there is something particularly satisfying about enjoying Romanian wine in Transylvania itself.
From Plums to Țuică
Autumn isn’t only about grapes.
Plums are another important part of the season.
When the plum harvest arrives, households can have more fruit than they could possibly eat fresh.
So, once again, preservation begins.
Some plums become jam.
Some become other preserves.
And some may eventually become țuică, the traditional Romanian plum spirit.
The production of țuică is a long-standing rural tradition, although methods and regulations vary from place to place.
The basic idea is simple:
Use what the land gives you. Waste as little as possible. Preserve the harvest.
For generations, fruit that might otherwise have been lost could become something enjoyed throughout the winter and beyond.
And there is something wonderfully Transylvanian about that philosophy.
The orchard gives.
The family works.
The cellar stores.
And winter eventually arrives.
Magiun de Prune: Saving Summer in a Jar
One of the most delicious examples of autumn preservation is magiun de prune, often simply called magiun.
Magiun is a thick plum preserve traditionally made by slowly cooking plums until they become dense, rich and intensely flavorful.
There is something almost poetic about the process.
Take an abundant autumn harvest.
Reduce it slowly.
Concentrate the flavor.
And turn the fruit of summer into something that can be enjoyed long after the trees have become bare.
A jar of magiun is therefore more than a sweet preserve.
It is summer saved for winter.
And that is the philosophy behind so much of traditional Romanian food preservation.
Zacuscă: Autumn in a Jar
Perhaps no autumn food better represents Romanian preservation than zacusca.
If you have never tried it, imagine the flavors of the late summer garden brought together into a rich vegetable spread.
Eggplant.
Red peppers.
Tomatoes.
Onions.
And, depending on the family recipe, beans, mushrooms or other vegetables.
The vegetables are prepared, cooked slowly and combined into a thick, flavorful spread.
Then comes the important part:
preserving it for winter.
Zacuscă is commonly prepared in substantial quantities toward the end of summer and into autumn, then placed in jars for later use.
Every family can have its own version.
Some prefer more eggplant.
Some emphasize roasted peppers.
Some add mushrooms.
Some recipes are closely guarded family traditions.
And when winter arrives, a jar of zacuscă can bring the flavors of autumn back to the table.
Spread it on bread.
Serve it as part of a meal.
Share it with guests.
And suddenly you are tasting the harvest months after the fields have gone quiet.
Murături: The Pickles of Winter
If zacuscă represents the richness of autumn, murături represent another important part of Romanian preservation:
fermentation and pickling.
Cucumbers.
Green tomatoes.
Peppers.
Cauliflower.
Carrots.
Cabbage.
And many other vegetables can find their way into jars, barrels or other containers for winter storage.
The exact ingredients and methods vary from family to family and region to region.
But the purpose is the same.
Preserve today’s harvest for tomorrow’s table.
Pickled vegetables have long been part of Romanian winter meals, accompanying everything from stews and meats to polenta and other traditional dishes.
And there is something wonderfully practical about the tradition.
When the garden is finished producing, the pantry continues to provide.
Castraveți — Cucumbers for the Winter
Cucumbers, or castraveți, are among the familiar vegetables preserved for the colder months.
A fresh summer cucumber is wonderful.
But a properly preserved cucumber becomes something different.
Crisp.
Sour.
Salty.
Refreshing.
A perfect accompaniment to heavier winter foods.
The jar becomes a little piece of summer waiting in the pantry.
And that is the magic of traditional preservation.
It changes not only the food, but also our relationship with time.
Varză — Cabbage for Winter
Cabbage has a particularly important place in the Romanian kitchen.
Fresh cabbage can be cooked in many ways, but preserving cabbage for winter has an even greater significance.
Fermented cabbage, varză murată, becomes an important ingredient in traditional cold-weather cooking.
It can eventually become part of dishes such as sarmale, where cabbage leaves are wrapped around a savory filling.
The cabbage that grew in the autumn garden therefore becomes part of the winter and Christmas table.
This is food preservation at its most practical.
And perhaps at its most beautiful.
One season provides for another.
It’s Not Just Vegetables
Once you begin looking at traditional autumn preservation, you realize just how much of the harvest could be transformed.
Apples become compote or jam.
Pears can be preserved.
Plums become magiun.
Peppers become part of zacuscă.
Cucumbers become murături.
Cabbage becomes sauerkraut-style preserved cabbage.
Tomatoes can be preserved in different forms.
Herbs can be dried.
Fruit can become syrups.
And depending on the household, many other garden products may be preserved for winter.
The result is a pantry that tells the story of the year.
The summer garden is still there—but now it is in jars.
The Autumn Pantry: A Sense of Security
This may be the most important part of the story.
To a modern traveler, making dozens of jars of vegetables may seem quaint.
A charming rural tradition.
A glimpse into another time.
But historically, it was much more than that.
It was security.
If the harvest was good, the family could preserve it.
If the winter was long, there was food.
If fresh vegetables were unavailable, the pantry provided them.
If unexpected hardship came, the family had something stored away.
The jars represented work.
But they also represented security.
That feeling matters.
It is the quiet confidence of knowing that the family has prepared.
That there will be food on the table.
That the work of summer and autumn will help carry everyone through winter.
In that sense, traditional preservation is not simply about food.
It is about resilience.
Autumn Is Also About Gathering
There is another side to all of this that is easy to overlook.
You don’t make dozens of jars of zacuscă alone because you have nothing better to do.
These kinds of preparations can become communal activities.
Family members help.
Neighbors may share knowledge.
Recipes are passed from one generation to the next.
Children learn by watching.
Older generations teach younger ones.
Someone roasts the vegetables.
Someone chops.
Someone stirs.
Someone prepares the jars.
Someone cleans.
Someone stores the finished product.
And eventually everyone sits down together.
The work becomes part of the memory.
That is an important part of traditional village life.
Food preservation becomes family preservation.
The Smell of Autumn in a Transylvanian Village
Imagine walking through Richis in October.
The mornings are cool.
The vineyards have changed color.
The gardens are winding down.
The smell of wood smoke begins to appear.
Somewhere nearby, vegetables are being roasted.
A kitchen is busy.
A cellar is being organized.
Jars are being filled.
Perhaps grapes are being harvested.
Perhaps plums are being processed.
Perhaps someone is preparing a batch of pickles.
The village feels different.
Quieter.
More purposeful.
More connected to the season.
This is not the Transylvania of movie sets.
It is the Transylvania of daily life.
Autumn in Richis
And this is where staying in a village like Richis becomes so special.
During the summer, Transylvania can be full of activity.
Visitors explore the fortified churches.
Travelers visit Sighișoara.
Cars move between villages.
But autumn brings a different rhythm.
The countryside becomes quieter.
The light becomes softer.
The temperatures become cooler.
And the village begins preparing for winter.
At The Inn at Richis, guests can experience that atmosphere while still having a comfortable place to return to after a day of exploring.
You can spend your days discovering the Saxon villages.
Visit Biertan.
Explore Sighișoara.
Walk through the countryside.
Discover local food and wine.
And then return to Richis.
Return to the Inn.
Sit beside the fire.
Enjoy Romanian wine.
And simply slow down.
Autumn Is a Wonderful Time to Explore Transylvania
Autumn also offers some of the best conditions for exploring the countryside.
The summer heat has faded.
The landscape is changing color.
The villages become quieter.
The forests take on gold, orange and red.
The vineyards are alive with harvest activity.
And the season provides opportunities for hiking, cycling, photography, village walks, historic sites, food experiences and simply enjoying the landscape.
Throughout Transylvania, harvest celebrations and local food traditions remain part of the autumn cultural calendar.
In the area around Richis, this creates an especially appealing combination:
history + countryside + food + wine + village life.
And Then Comes December
By December, the landscape has changed again.
The leaves have fallen.
The fields are quiet.
The days are short.
Winter has arrived.
And another important Romanian tradition begins.
The traditional pig slaughter.
In Romania, pigs have traditionally been slaughtered around the Christmas period, particularly around Saint Ignatius Day, December 20, known as Ignat.
For many families, this is not simply the preparation of meat.
It is a family event.
A day when people gather.
Everyone has a role.
The work is divided.
The meat is processed and preserved in different ways.
Sausages are prepared.
Other traditional pork products are made.
And some of the fresh meat is cooked immediately.
That meal is known as Pomana porcului—literally, the “alms of the pig.”
Pomana Porcului: A Meal After the Work
There is something important about the tradition of Pomana porcului.
After the work is done, people eat together.
The family gathers around the food.
Fresh pork is cooked.
Bread is served.
Pickles may accompany the meal.
Wine or traditional spirits may be shared.
The work becomes a celebration.
And once again, food creates community.
The tradition has been described as an opportunity for family and community members to gather, with different people taking different roles in preparing the meat and the meal.
It is another example of the same philosophy that begins months earlier with the harvest.
Prepare together. Preserve together. Eat together.
The Pantry and the Pig: Preparing for Winter
Now the larger picture becomes clear.
Autumn begins with abundance.
Grapes become wine.
Plums become magiun.
Some plums become țuică.
Eggplant, peppers, tomatoes and onions become zacuscă.
Cucumbers become murături.
Cabbage is preserved.
Other vegetables are stored.
Fruit is transformed into jams and preserves.
And as winter approaches, the traditional pig slaughter provides meat and products that can sustain the family through the cold months.
Each activity is different.
But they all serve the same purpose.
Prepare today for tomorrow.
That was not simply a culinary philosophy.
It was a way of surviving winter.
It was a way of caring for the family.
And it created a deep sense of security:
We have prepared.
We have enough.
We will get through the winter.
A Different Definition of Luxury
Perhaps this is one reason autumn in Transylvania can feel so meaningful to a modern traveler.
We live in a world where almost everything is available instantly.
Fresh vegetables in January.
Fruit from another continent.
Wine from thousands of miles away.
Food delivered to your door.
Yet here, traditional village life reminds us of something very different.
There is value in knowing where something came from.
There is satisfaction in preserving it.
There is pleasure in sharing it.
And there is comfort in knowing that the pantry is full.
That may be a very different kind of luxury.
The luxury of enough.
Gemütlichkeit in the Autumn Village
And this is where another word comes naturally into the story:
Gemütlichkeit.
Warmth.
Comfort.
Contentment.
Friendliness.
A feeling of belonging.
Imagine spending an autumn day exploring Transylvania.
Perhaps you have visited Biertan.
Perhaps you have walked through Sighișoara.
Perhaps you have spent the afternoon hiking through the countryside.
Perhaps you have visited a vineyard.
And then you return to The Inn at Richis.
The sun is going down.
The air is cool.
The fire is burning.
There is Romanian wine.
There is conversation.
And there is nowhere else you need to be.
That is Gemütlichkeit.
The Spirit of Richis
The autumn traditions of Transylvania are also part of what we call:
The Spirit of Richis.
It is not simply the architecture.
It is not only the Saxon church.
It isn’t just the old houses or the countryside.
It is the relationship between people and place.
The vineyard.
The garden.
The orchard.
The pantry.
The cellar.
The kitchen.
The fire.
The table.
The family.
The village.
The seasons.
The knowledge passed from one generation to the next.
That is what makes a place feel alive.
And that is why autumn can be such a remarkable time to visit Richis.
Transylvania Is a Way of Life
This is what we mean when we say:
Transylvania is a way of Life.
It isn’t simply about visiting medieval castles.
It isn’t simply about photographing fortified churches.
It isn’t simply about Dracula.
It isn’t simply about beautiful mountains and forests.
Transylvania is also about understanding how people have lived here.
How they worked the land.
How they harvested.
How they preserved.
How they prepared.
How they gathered.
How they celebrated.
How they made sure the family was ready for winter.
And perhaps most importantly:
How they lived together.
That is a Transylvania worth discovering.
Come Experience Autumn in Transylvania
Imagine visiting Transylvania in September or October.
Wake up at The Inn at Richis.
Drink your morning coffee.
Look out over the village.
Take a walk.
Explore the countryside.
Visit a fortified church.
Discover Biertan.
Spend a day in Sighișoara.
Taste Romanian wine.
Learn about the harvest.
Discover the traditions of zacuscă and murături.
Taste magiun.
Learn about țuică.
Return to the Inn.
Sit beside the fire.
And let the day slow down.
This isn’t simply a vacation.
It is an opportunity to experience a season in the life of Transylvania.
Stay Long Enough to Experience the Season
One of the best things you can give yourself when visiting Transylvania is time.
Don’t simply pass through.
Stay.
Give yourself several days.
Explore the region.
But leave room for the unexpected.
A village road.
A vineyard.
A market.
A conversation.
A local food.
A harvest activity.
A quiet afternoon.
Because the most memorable experiences are not always the ones you planned.
Sometimes they are the ones you discover along the way.
Come Home to Richis
After a day of discovering autumn in Transylvania, there is something wonderful about returning to a quiet village.
Returning to The Inn at Richis.
Returning to your room.
Returning to the courtyard.
Returning to the fireplace.
Returning to Romanian wine.
Returning to the historic wine cellar.
Returning to the quiet.
This is where the excitement of exploring Transylvania meets the comfort of home.
Explore by day. Come home to Richis at night.
An Autumn You Will Remember
Years from now, you may not remember every church you photographed.
You may not remember every road you drove.
You may not remember every date in the history book.
But you may remember something else.
The smell of wood smoke.
The colors of the hills.
The taste of Romanian wine.
The richness of zacuscă on fresh bread.
The sharpness of homemade pickles.
The sweetness of plum magiun.
The sound of village life.
The warmth of the fire.
The quiet of Richis.
And the feeling that for a few days, you experienced a different rhythm of life.
That is what makes autumn in Transylvania so special.
Come Discover the Autumn Rhythm of Transylvania
There is a season for everything.
Spring brings new growth.
Summer brings abundance.
Autumn brings harvest.
Winter brings rest.
And in Transylvania, these seasons are still deeply connected to the rhythms of village life.
Come experience the grape harvest.
Discover Romanian wine.
Learn about țuică.
Taste the flavors of autumn.
Discover zacuscă.
Try murături.
Taste magiun de prune.
Explore the Saxon villages.
Walk the countryside.
Visit the fortified churches.
Then return to Richis.
Return to The Inn at Richis.
Sit beside the fire.
Enjoy a glass of Romanian wine.
And experience the warmth of Gemütlichkeit.
Because this is more than a beautiful season.
It is a glimpse into how Transylvania has lived for generations.
This is The Spirit of Richis.
This is Gemütlichkeit.
This is Transylvania.
And this is what we mean when we say:
Transylvania is a way of Life.
Come Experience Autumn at The Inn at Richis
Come for the colors.
Come for the harvest.
Come for the wine.
Come for the villages.
Come for the food.
Come for the traditions.
Come for the history.
But most of all, come to experience the rhythm of life.
Make The Inn at Richis your home base while you discover the autumn traditions of Transylvania.
Explore the vineyards.
Visit the Saxon villages.
Discover Biertan and Sighișoara.
Taste the foods of the harvest.
Walk the countryside.
Then return to Richis.
Slow down.
Warm yourself by the fire.
Raise a glass of Romanian wine.
And let the Spirit of Richis become part of your story.
Come for the harvest. Stay for the feeling.
Experience The Spirit of Richis.
Discover Gemütlichkeit.
Your Transylvania story begins in Richis.
Transylvania is a way of Life.
- Principala 123, Richis, Romania
- +40742 619 392
- booking@innatrichis.com