The Cappella della Madonna di Vitaleta on the road from Pienza to San Quirico d'Orcia

In 2001 I came to live in Italy. I had some fun, wrote a journal and this is the blog of my story...

"Tuscany is a state of grace. The countryside is so lovingly designed that the eye sweeps the mountains and valleys without stumbling over a single stone. The lilt of the rolling green hills, the upsurging cypresses, the terraces sculptured by generations that have handled the rocks with skillful tenderness, the fields geometrically juxtaposed as though drawn by a draughtsman for beauty as well as productivity; the battlements of castles on the hills, their tall towers standing grey-blue and golden tan among the forest of trees, the air of such clarity that every sod of earth stands out in such dazzling detail. The fields ripening with barley and oats, beans and beets. The grape-heavy vines espaliered between the horizontal branches of silver-green olive trees, composing orchards of webbed design, rich in intimation of wine, olive oil and lacy-leaf poetry. Tuscany untied the knots in a man's intestines, wiped out the ills of the world. Italy is the garden of Europe, Tuscany is the garden of Italy, Florence is the flower of Tuscany." Irving Stone from my favourite book " The Agony and the Ecstacy" A fictional biography of Michelangelo



100. Greve wine fiasco and Camillo a Gabbiano


September is officially the month of the wine festival here in Tuscany and it begins here in Greve-in-Chianti with the 13th 'Rassegna' of Chianti Classico. Next week the show is in Panzano, then Impruneta and it finishes in Mercatale. This is only our second edition and after last year's happy initiation we're excited about coming back...

The festival goes from Friday to Sunday, but as we remember from last year it's best to come early as they do begin to run out by the Sunday!





As usual they have two long booths one with the normal Chianti Classicos and Super Tuscans and the other with the riservas. I arrive an hour after the start at 5 pm and within an hour and a half they are starting to run out of some of the more popular wines! Apparently they have rationed 2 bottles per day and again have under estimated by a long way! Anyway I have the chance to sample some superb wines including Castellare's wonderful '98 I Sodi di San Niccolo and Terreno's '97 Momento Massimo.





I return with Annette on the Saturday afternoon and the wine has all but dried up... and some of the wines I've recommended to Annette, she can't try! Very disappointing... Also their ticket system has changed, whereas yesterday you bought a ticket for 10 euros and got ten tastes. Now you only get five! I'm not sure what they are playing at, but it leaves a bad taste in the mouth...




To drown our sorrows we book a table at Camillo a Gabbiano, a restaurant we've passed many times in Mercatale. The restaurant is part of Castello di Gabbiano, the food is great and, yes, they have wine too!

http://www.castellogabbiano.it/en/
Posted by at
Labels: ,

No comments:

Post a Comment

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)