Izmir Wine Scene

Turkey's most cosmopolitan city has a growing wine bar scene. The ancient Smyrna was a Greek wine trading hub for millennia. Modern Izmir balances Muslim heritage with its secular, wine-drinking tradition.

What to do there

5 things to do

1. 1 Stand Inside Marcus Aurelius's Emergency Architecture History · Price: low

   Where: Roman Agora of Smyrna, Namazgah Mh. 939. Sk. No:20, Konak, Izmir. Open daily 08:30–19:00. Entry fee approximately €6 for foreigners.

   What: In 178 AD, an earthquake leveled most of Smyrna. Marcus Aurelius — the philosopher-emperor writing his Meditations at the time — personally funded the city's reconstruction. What he built here was not just a marketplace: it was a two-level civic miracle. Above ground, two rows of Corinthian columns still stand. Below, descend into the underground vaulted galleries — the substructures that support the entire upper platform. The 2,000-year-old water channels beneath these arches still flow today. This is where Smyrna's citizens returned after the disaster. Inscriptions carved into the walls list every donor who helped rebuild. Find them. The statues of Poseidon and Demeter discovered here are now in the Izmir Archaeological Museum — but the stone bases where they once stood are still in the agora.

   How: Enter from Agora Caddesi off Eşrefpaşa Bulvarı. Walk the upper colonnaded level first, then find the stairs down to the underground arched galleries — this is the part most visitors miss and the reason to come. Allow 45–60 minutes. The site is uncrowded before 10:00 AM.

   Backup: If the site is closed for excavation (check smyrnaagorasi.com before visiting), the exterior columns are visible from the street and the story can be absorbed from the surrounding walls.

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2. 2 Read the Last Words of an 86-Year-Old Man Who Refused a Roman Governor History · Free

   Where: Church of St. Polycarp, Necati Bey Bulvarı No:2/A, Akdeniz, Izmir. Hours: Monday–Saturday 15:00–17:00. Ring the white door on Necati Bey Bulvarı to enter. Closed to independent visitors on Sundays.

   What: In 155 AD, the Roman proconsul of Asia gave Polycarp — the 86-year-old Bishop of Smyrna, a direct disciple of the Apostle John — one last chance to swear by Caesar and renounce Christ. Polycarp's answer, recorded word for word and preserved for 1,870 years: 'For 86 years I have served Christ and He has done me no wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?' He was taken to the stadium, bound to a stake, and set alight. When the flames failed to harm him, a soldier stabbed him. His martyrdom is the oldest fully documented, fully reliable account of a Christian martyr's death. This church — built 1625 with permission of Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I, at the personal request of French King Louis XIII — stands where that community has gathered continuously. It is the oldest Catholic church in Izmir, and the interior frescoes are extraordinary for a building in a Muslim-majority city.

   How: The visit is free and brief — 15–20 minutes inside. The church is small but the emotional weight is enormous. Read the Martyrdom of Polycarp inscription near the altar if it is displayed. The neighborhood around it (Alsancak) is perfect for a walk after.

   Backup: If closed, the exterior of the church is always accessible and the story is complete without entering. The Izmir Archaeological Museum (10 min walk) has related early Christian artifacts.

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3. 3 Navigate the Bazaar That Has Stood on This Ground Since Alexander Adventure · Free

   Where: Kemeraltı Bazaar, Konak district, Izmir. Enter from Konak Square (near the famous clock tower). Main artery is Anafartalar Caddesi. Open Monday–Saturday 09:00–20:00.

   What: This ground has been a commercial hub since Hellenistic times — the agora you just left and this bazaar are separated by three minutes and 2,000 years of continuous trade. Today, 5,000 shops. But navigate past the tourist stalls to Havra Sokağı (Synagogue Street): there are 34 synagogues in this district — 8 still operating. The oldest Jewish community in Turkey settled here after Sultan Bayezid II welcomed the Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain in 1492. They traded, built synagogues, and baked a pastry called boyoz — and in doing so wove themselves permanently into Smyrna's identity. Find the Kızlarağası Hanı (1744): a caravanserai restored in 1993, its courtyard still exactly what a 17th-century merchant would recognize. The hans around Kemeraltı map onto the same commercial logic as the Roman agora 300 meters away.

   How: Allow 60–90 minutes minimum. Use the Hisar Mosque (1598) and the Kızlarağası Hanı as navigation anchors. Havra Sokağı branches off the main bazaar lane toward the water. Do not hire a guide — the pleasure is getting lost then finding your way out through a completely different street.

   Backup: If a specific han is closed, the street-level bazaar provides the same historical layering. The Kemeraltı experience cannot really fail — even on a slow day it rewards exploration.

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4. 4 Order the Wine Herodotus Wrote About in the 5th Century BC Wine · Price: moderate

   Where: Hayyam Şarap & Kitabevi, 1469. Sokak No:5, Alsancak, Izmir. Evening hours. This wine bar is also a bookshop — three floors, live music some nights, extensive all-Turkish wine selection, indoor and outdoor seating.

   What: In the 5th century BC, Herodotus — the world's first historian, writing from nearby Bodrum — described a rose and honey-scented wine called Moskhatos produced in Smyrna. That grape is Bornova Misketi, named for the village of Bornova just outside Izmir. It is reputed to be the oldest grape variety ever named in a historical source anywhere on earth. The ancient city of Clazomenae (today's Urla, 40 km west) was shipping wine in distinctive amphorae across the Western Mediterranean and Black Sea from the 7th century BC. Fifty-two percent of all Turkish wine is produced within reach of where you're sitting. Ask for a glass of Bornova Misketi or a Urla-region white. When it arrives: citrus, green apple, lemon balm. That's Herodotus's wine. You're drinking it 2,500 years later in the same city he wrote about.

   How: No reservation required for bar seating. A glass of Turkish wine runs approximately 80–150 TL (roughly €3–6 at mid-2025 rates). If the staff speak wine, ask specifically for Pasaeli or a Urla-designation white — both are world-class. The Hayyam staff are knowledgeable and enthusiastic about Turkish wine.

   Backup: If Hayyam is at capacity, Madam Bordo wine bar (also Alsancak) carries a similar Turkish wine selection. Or: buy a bottle of Bornova Misketi from L.A. Wines Shop, Atatürk Cd. No:210/A Alsancak, and take it to the Kordon waterfront (open container culture is relaxed here).

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5. 5 Eat the Pastry That Traveled from Spain to Smyrna in 1492 History · Price: low

   Where: Alsancak Dostlar Fırını (Dostlar Bakery), Kıbrıs Şehitleri Caddesi No:120, Alsancak, Izmir. Open early morning — arrive before 09:00 for the freshest boyoz. Phone: 0232 465 3301.

   What: In 1492, Ferdinand and Isabella expelled the Jews from Spain. Sultan Bayezid II of the Ottoman Empire — reportedly saying the Spanish king had impoverished his own kingdom by expelling people who would enrich his — welcomed them into Smyrna. They came with their language (Ladino), their synagogues, their trades, and their recipes. One recipe: a simple pastry of flour and sesame oil, baked in circular flaky layers, called 'bollos' in Spanish (the two L's become Y in Ladino: boyoz). No yeast, because it had to be kosher for Passover. This bakery — established 1983, third generation, consistently the most respected boyoz address in Izmir — bakes them the same way. Order the classic: boyoz + haşlanmış yumurta (boiled egg) + çay (tea). The egg is a Passover echo that is now simply Izmir breakfast. Cost: approximately 30–50 TL (under €2). Every Izmir native grew up eating this. You're eating their history.

   How: Walk in, point at the boyoz behind the glass counter, say 'bir boyoz ve bir yumurta, lütfen' (one boyoz and one egg, please). Stand at the counter or find a table. The line moves fast. This is a morning ritual — go early, not late.

   Backup: Boyoz is available at many bakeries throughout Izmir. If Dostlar Fırını is unexpectedly closed, any fırın (bakery) in the Alsancak or Konak neighborhoods will carry it in the morning.

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