You have to climb to 1000 meters above sea level to reach Ano Trikala, a picture-postcard tourist village, particularly charming when its tiled roofs are snow-covered. The beautiful stone guesthouse Anotopos Filoxenias (Ano Synoikia, Trikala Korinthias, Tel. (+30) 698.626.2113), run by Vlasia and her mother Anna Tzini, offers two beautiful and comfortable suites, traditionally decorated, as well as an exceptional breakfast: hearty, rustic and substantial. There are fantastic savory pies made with mountain greens and trachana (fermented yogurt and grain), homemade cakes and jams, rice milk, scrambled eggs made with tomatoes, and freshly squeezed juices.

In Mesaia Trikala, you’ll come across Emporiko Biopoleio (Tel. (+30) 693.428.8998), a store stocking the traditional products of Feneos: select honeys, nuts, preserves made from local fruit, mountain herbs and the fine mountain “vanilla” beans of Feneos, thin white beans with a PGI status. At Legga Cheese Products (Tel. (+30) 27470.222.32) in the area of ​​Stymfalia in the village of Kalianoi, make sure to pick up some of their wonderful barrel-aged feta. You can also buy well-boiled Feneou “vanilla” beans, made by the company Dikotilon, at the same spot. 

An extended version of this article was previously published in Greek at gastronomos.gr.