Sunday, October 2, 2011
Our farmhouse, The Tenuta di Spannochia is a very unique place. The name refers to the Italian "pannocchia" meaning the ear of corn. The Tenuta (estate) shares its name with the important Spannochia family which built and kept it over seven centuries (the estate dates back to the 12th century.) It is believed the Spannochia's were part of the feudal clans that along with the church, controlled most of the countryside of Tuscany during the medieval period. They were one of the most influential Sienese families. The family sold the property to Delfino Cinelli in 1925 a Florentine aristocrat and writer who bought the property as an investment and for it's value to him as a tranquil place to pursue his writing.
There are over 1200 acres of land, 950 of it is forested. In 2006 it made Conde Nast's Green List. It is an organic farm specializing in heirloom produce and almost-extinct animal breeds, a wildlife preserve, and educational center. They offer internships to young people to help run the farm. However, as I mentioned in my prior post, at night when it's dark, it turns into the house from "The Shining" and there isn't enough money in the world to get me to go downstairs where there is Internet and type my blog.
We set out today to head to Arezzo which is a large town in Eastern Tuscany. It was a long drive, about an hour and a half. The biggest reason I wanted to go there was because the film "La Vita e Bella" was filmed here because of the regions beauty and because the first Sunday of the month is the furniture/antique flea market. I learned a couple of things about this Italian flea market, 1. There is no bargaining, prices are fixed and 2. It is expensive. I found a couple of small old books dating back to 1788 and they were $250. Yes, they were original, but really? I looked at other books vendors had for sale and they were around the same price.
We had lunch at Trattoria il Saraceno. I had the best truffle lasagna while Russell had the gnocchi. I have realized that you can't be in a hurry to eat anywhere in Italy. Italians love to enjoy their meals.
We then headed to the Montalcino (Siena) region which is the region know for the Brunello di Montalcino wine which has to be 100% Sangiovese grapes. This was another long drive, about 2 hours. The winery we were going to was Poggio Antico which was the first winery to receive the most prestigious wine classification, D.O.C.G. (Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita-controlled and guaranteed from the origin). Back in 1970 there were only 20 wineries in the region which consists of only 10 miles. Now there are approximately 208 wineries. In order to call your wine a Brunello di Montalcino, there are many criteria that have to be followed aside from the Sangiovese grape. The alcohol content cannot exceed 15% and there are minimum aging requirements depending on if it's a reserve, etc. We received a tour of the winery and since they are in the middle of their harvest taste the Sangiovese grapes. Accompanying us on the tour was a couple from Minnesota and another couple from Maryland. We ended our evening with a fabulous meal from the restaurant on sight. Italian wine is very complicated (at least I think so). It's not done by type of grape like Pinot Noir or Chardonnay but by region. We did buy two bottles and will be looking forward to drinking them someday!
We are off to Siena tomorrow!
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