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



217. Vino al Vino- Panzano-in-Chianti

It's a beautiful sunny afternoon for my third wine festival in Panzano, the gorgeous hill-top town above Greve.




The drive out is as spectacular as always and all the usual wine estates are here showing off their wares. I get chatting to some very satisfied English and American holiday makers who have obviously just stumbled on this event and think they've won the lottery!




I move effortlessly from Castello dei Rampolla's 2003 Vigna d'Alceo to La Massa's 2001/2002 Giorgio Primo. Villa Caffaggio's 2001 Cortaccio is also here and the usual Anfiteatro, Tzingana, and Fontodi etc... making for a very happy afternoon!


(Original journal entry 16/9/05)
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