Dive Into the Atmosphere of Pomegranate Festival with Four Seasons Hotel Baku

It’s a well-known fact that Azerbaijan has a very rich and diverse culture. Every single city in this country has something that makes it unique and different from others. Sheki is famous for sweets called pakhlava, Kurdamir - for its juicy watermelons, Guba is loved for its apples and last but not least, both locals and guests of the country go to Goychay to try its pomegranates.

Fascinated by the beautiful traditions that stand behind Goychay and its huge variety of pomegranates, Four Seasons Hotel Baku wants to share the story of Pomegranate Festival with its guests.

Pomegranate: the King of Fruits

Pomegranate (Nar in Azerbaijani) is a big part of Azerbaijan's culture. This bright and juicy fruit became the country's symbol a long time ago. Poets and composers dedicated many poems and songs to it. Pomegranate represents love, abundance and immortality, which is the exact reason why it’s considered as the King of Fruits in Azerbaijan.

Goychay

The main home to pomegranates in Azerbaijan is located in the city of Goychay, which locals often call "Pomegranate Paradise". About 50 thousand tons of different kinds of pomegranates are grown annually in this region of the country.

Every November, when it's time to collect pomegranates, the people of Goychay celebrate it with a Pomegranate Festival. The city welcomes guests from all over the country and proudly calls this festival one of the most interesting, colorful and joyful events of the season, not only for Goychay but for all of Azerbaijan.

Warm Welcome

During the Pomegranate Festival, annually organized by the Ministry of Culture of Azerbaijan, the Executive Authority of Goychay region and AzNar OJSC, you can feel the authentic spirit of the national holiday, thanks to the extraordinary dishes presented from different varieties of pomegranate by local residents and participants of the festival.

Each gardener or pomegranate grower tries to surprise the guests of the festival in their own way: someone treats guests with pomegranate jam, juice, or baked pieces of pomegranate; others can even tell fortunes using pomegranate seeds. Usually, the fortune-tellers wish guests prosperity and success, and thank them for coming to the festival.

Pomegranate Journey

On the days of the festival, the main street of Goychay is covered with different exhibitions, little shops and corners that represent various types of pomegranate. The most famous ones are called Veles, Shirin, Guleisha, and Shihbaba. These varieties differ in the thickness of the skin and the size of the grains. In Goychay one can learn the ancient secrets of making Narsharab, a pomegranate sauce that can be often seen on side of different kinds of national dishes with meat and fish, as well as used for health purposes.

Guests of the festival will also be able to enjoy concerts of local musicians, watch national dances and take part in various competitions like picking the heaviest pomegranate, for example. So far, the largest one has been noted weighing more than 1.5 kilograms (3.3 pounds).

Though located in Baku, Four Seasons Hotel Baku also celebrates the festival by creating awareness of it and showcasing it almost in every part of the Hotel during the month of November:

• The lobby was covered with burgundy flowers
• Zafferano Restaurant presented a three course menu with pomegranate being one of the main ingredients of each dish
• Special pomegratane Coffee Break menus were offered during private events
• In-house guests received room amenities with pomegranate and a little card with description of the festival.