What to expect at Benvenuto Vermentino 2026
From 5 to 10 October 2026 Olbia devotes a whole week to its signature wine with the twelfth Benvenuto Vermentino: guided tastings, open wineries, a conference on cork, a Shopping Night and a wine and literature prize. The best way to taste Gallura.
Benvenuto Vermentino 2026 Programme
Benvenuto Vermentino is the Vermentino Week created by the North Sardinia Chamber of Commerce and its special agency Promocamera, together with the Municipality of Olbia and the Vermentino di Gallura Protection Consortium. The twelfth edition brings together art, music, culture and food and wine, introducing the wineries of the two appellations, Vermentino di Gallura DOCG and Vermentino di Sardegna, to visitors and enthusiasts. The festival is part of Salude & Trigu, the Chamber’s project that weaves the traditional and cultural festivals of northern Sardinia into a single story.
All week long
From 5 to 10 October the town’s hotels, restaurants and bars take part in "Vermentino a Tavola", serving themed menus and aperitifs that pair the wine with the best local produce. Entertainment, cultural events and tastings take place in the streets of the historic centre, while with "Esperienze in Cantina" the wineries open their doors for guided tours and tastings with the producers themselves.
Wednesday 7 October
At 5:00 pm the Archaeological Museum hosts the first guided technical tasting: a masterclass led by AIS sommeliers to learn how to recognise the aromas, structure and minerality of Vermentino.
Thursday 8 October
Morning
At 10:00 am, again at the Archaeological Museum, the conference "Il Sughero sardo eccellenza mondiale" (Sardinian cork, a world-class excellence) opens: a technical and scientific meeting organised by the Vermentino di Gallura DOCG Protection Consortium on the health of the sector and its future prospects. Registration is required at info@vermentinogallura.wine. At the same time the Art Crafts Exhibition opens, showing fine Sardinian handicrafts in the museum from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm until Sunday 11 October.
Afternoon
At 4:00 pm the action moves to the nuragic sacred well of Sa Testa for "Il Vermentino tra passato e futuro" (Vermentino between past and future): a talk on sustainable innovation, the sacred value of water and digital technologies for smart vineyard management. At 5:00 pm the second guided technical tasting with AIS sommeliers returns to the Archaeological Museum.
Friday 9 October
At 5:00 pm the Archaeological Museum hosts "Benvenuto Vermentino... Show", a wine talk with a Vermentino tasting paired with other local delicacies. In the evening the town lights up for the Vermentino Shopping Night: participating shops, craft workshops and restaurants offer their customers a glass of Vermentino di Gallura DOCG.
Saturday 10 October
At 5:00 pm the town-centre tasting turns Corso Umberto I and Via Regina Elena into an experiential trail through the finest Vermentino labels from Gallura DOCG, Sardinia, Liguria and Tuscany. The closing day also brings to Olbia the award ceremony of the National Vermentino Wine and Literature Prize "Intrecci di vite": now in its tenth edition, the competition explores the meeting between literature and the world of wine through published Italian and international fiction. Created by the North Sardinia Chamber of Commerce in partnership with the Municipalities of Olbia and Castelnuovo Magra and in collaboration with producers from Sardinia, Liguria and Tuscany, the 2026 call was presented in Rome at the headquarters of Unioncamere.
How to Get to Benvenuto Vermentino in Olbia
Distances from main cities
Cagliari
265 km · 3h 15min
Olbia
You are here
Alghero
137 km · 1h 50min
Event venue
Archaeological Museum — Benvenuto Vermentino
Olbia (SS) · Isolotto di Peddone, Corso Umberto I, Via Regina Elena, Sa Testa sacred well
🚗 By car
From Sassari take the SS597/SS199 to Olbia (about 1 hour 10 minutes); from Cagliari take the SS131 Carlo Felice to Abbasanta and then the SS131 DCN towards Nuoro and Olbia. The Archaeological Museum stands on the islet of Peddone, on the seafront close to the historic centre: it is best to park near the port and walk.
🚌 Bus
ARST regional buses connect Olbia with Sassari, Nuoro, Tempio and the villages of Gallura; within the town, ASPO urban lines serve the centre, the port and the airport. Check timetables on the operators’ websites during the event.
⛴️ Ferry
The Isola Bianca port, a few minutes from the centre, receives ferries from Civitavecchia, Livorno, Genoa and Piombino.
✈️ Nearest airport
Olbia Costa Smeralda Airport (approx. 4 km from the centre).
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Frequently Asked Questions about Benvenuto Vermentino
Is there an entrance fee for Benvenuto Vermentino events?
The events at the Archaeological Museum, the art crafts exhibition and the town-centre tasting are open to the public and, unless the organisers state otherwise, free of charge. Themed menus and aperitifs in hotels, restaurants and bars are charged at the venues’ own prices. Registration at info@vermentinogallura.wine is required for the cork conference on 8 October.
Where do the Vermentino Week events take place?
The heart of the festival is the Archaeological Museum of Olbia, on the islet of Peddone, which hosts the technical tastings, the conference, the wine talk and the crafts exhibition. On 8 October the talk “Il Vermentino tra passato e futuro” is held at the nuragic sacred well of Sa Testa, while the tasting on 10 October takes place along Corso Umberto I and Via Regina Elena.
Where can I park and eat in Olbia during the event?
Part of Olbia’s historic centre is a limited traffic zone: it is best to use the car parks along the seafront and at the port and walk to the Archaeological Museum and Corso Umberto I. For food, simply choose one of the restaurants, hotels and bars taking part in “Vermentino a Tavola”, with menus and aperitifs paired with Vermentino di Gallura DOCG.
Are there activities for children?
The programme is mainly aimed at adults and the tastings are for those over 18 only. With children you can still visit the art crafts exhibition at the Archaeological Museum, open from 10:00 am to 8:00 pm, the museum’s own collections and the street entertainment in the historic centre.
History and Traditions
Vermentino di Gallura is the only Sardinian wine with a controlled and guaranteed designation of origin: recognised as a DOC in 1975, it became a DOCG in 1996, the first on the island. The grapes grow on the granite and sandy soils of the north-east, in the vineyards of Arzachena, Berchidda, Monti and Luras, swept by the mistral and the sea salt: the result is a savoury, fragrant white wine with a typical almond finish. Alongside it there is Vermentino di Sardegna DOC, produced across the whole island, while the same grape is also grown in Liguria and Tuscany, regions linked to Olbia through the wine and literature prize.
Benvenuto Vermentino was conceived by the North Sardinia Chamber of Commerce to promote the wine and its production areas, boost its sales and link it to tourism. Now in its twelfth edition, the festival takes the glasses into the town’s landmark sites: the Archaeological Museum on the islet of Peddone, home to the wrecks of Roman and medieval ships recovered from the ancient harbour, and the sacred well of Sa Testa, a Bronze Age nuragic temple devoted to the cult of water. Next to the wine there is room for cork, another Gallura excellence, which travels from the woods of Calangianus and Tempio to wine bottles all over the world.
Olbia, the “happy” city of the Greeks, was a Punic and Roman port, then Civita, capital of the Judicate of Gallura, and for centuries Terranova Pausania, before taking back its ancient name in 1939. Today it is Sardinia’s main gateway and a member of the Italian Cities of Wine: a week of tastings is the perfect chance to discover its oldest soul, far from the beaches of the Costa Smeralda.