About the authors

Jan Svoboda and Jaroslav Vrba at a table on a terrace — Travel photoJan and Jaroslav, Janjina, 2013

Jaroslav Vrba and Jan Svoboda in October 2026 at a table on the same terrace in Janjina — Travel photoonly the chairs are new, 2026

We are Jan Svoboda and Jaroslav Vrba, and we wrote a book on the wine and food of Pelješac. We first came to Pelješac about 30 years ago, when we drove there for a holiday. Today we go back twice a year and write about our trips in the Journal.

The book took us three years and six trips to the peninsula. In it we describe 41 wineries in five areas, from Orebić to Ston. We tasted the wines and cooked the recipes together. All the photographs in the book are our own.

Why the book? To us Pelješac is an exceptional wine region, and we felt an overview of its winemakers was missing. So we wrote one ourselves.

Our favourite winemaker is Željko Ledinić, and our favourite wine is his Plavac Mali Prestige. It is a personal choice we both share.

Jan Svoboda

Led the interviews with the winemakers and took the photographs. Contributed to the text of the book.

Jaroslav Vrba

Wrote most of the text of the book. Took notes in the interviews with the winemakers.