Here we are on our way. I guess this man got his pick up truck started. He was going all of 10 kilometers so we just had to pass him out. That is not an easy thing here in this part of Italy. As you can see, there are no lines on the road to help you. You get close and make your move hoping that there is not some Mercedes coming the other way at a rate of speed that would make a NASCAR driver look slow. No one in Italy drives slow. In order to pass your driving test you need to learn to tailgate so that you can intimidate the other driver into letting you pass. That's just the way it's done here. You also need to learn how to flicker you headlights frantically, as if you were on the way to the hospital with your pregnant wife.
This is kind of backwards but this is the sign a the entrance. This entire vineyard was purchased in 2009 by a lady who worked there with the founding family. Who knows, maybe she won the lottery. We did not meet her because she is a hands on owner and was out helping with the harvest. She is in control of every aspect of the operation. Unbelievable but that's what our guide told us.
The entrance. That building in the background is actually a wine cellar. One of many on the property. Everything is in pristine condition. Earlier when I told you about Antonio working there I forgot to mention that Luca, the person who does cooking demonstrations here at IL MONINO is the cook there. They serve a lunch along with a tour and wine tasting. We did not do that as you need a reservation and it is very expensive. We had the tour and the wine tasting.
This is the store and where the tour begins. If you want to buy some wine here the price ranges from 8.00 euros for a Rosso di Montaaepulciano which is a young wine to a Riserva vino Nobile di Montepulciano D.O.C. for upwards of 95 euros and more. Some of the Vin Santo is as high as 300 to 500 euros for 375 ml bottle. A little later I'll explain why it is so expensive.
This is the Sangiovese grape. It is one of the premier grapes of the Tuscan area. These are stand alone grape vines which helps them get more air and sun. Unfortunately, this vineyard was hit by a hail storm in August or September so the harvest will be small. Hail is the worst thing that can happen in a vineyard. You could lose the entire harvest. They will manage to salvage some of these grapes and have a much smaller production this year. They also use the wine from the Sangiovese grape to blend with some Merlot or cab wines. Sangiovese wine from Tuscany is a great tasting wine. Believe me, I know from experience.
This is Stephonia our guide. She is extremely knowledgeable of the wines and the vineyard in general. These are large barrels of wine aging in one of the cellars. I am not sure how much they hold, but it looks like a lot. This is were they age the young wines like the Rosso di Montepulciano. It ages for just months before it is bottled. Some of the wines will continue to age in the bottle but not this one. Drink it up or you will end up putting in the salad. The more expensive wines can be kept in the bottle for years and will continue to age.
More large barrels of wine aging in one of the many cellars. The cellars must be kept cool and dark. Stephonia was always the last one out so she can shut the lights. If you look closely you can see the air lock on top of the barrel. The wine must be filled to the top and even a little of it in the air lock so that no air can enter and spoil the wine.
Another wine cellar with barrels of aging wine that looks like something we are more familiar with. There were hundreds and hundreds of these barrels in the cellars. Notice the black ceiling. That is mold. They want that there to help in the aging.
This is one of the grape presses. It is no longer in use but they keep it there for conversational purposes. Hey Richie P. Jr. maybe we could ship it to you. It's pretty big and can squeeze a lot of grapes. The winery now produces it wine in another area and puts it in the barrels here for aging.
This is Vin Santo dessert wine. The grapes for this wine are dried first and then squeezed several times. They get very little juice from the squeezing and, therefore, only can make small amounts of wine. It ends up like a syrup. It is put in these barrels and aged for at least 10 years before it is bottled. I guess that is why one 350ml bottle sells for over 340 euros. That would be over $450.00 at today's exchange rate. This wine cellar is above ground and all the windows are open. The wine likes to age at outside temperature no matter what the temperature is. I wonder where the stuff I buy comes from. The last bottle I bought at the Coop cost me around 9 euros.
Here we are in the tasting room. We tasted 5 wines, one white and four reds. These are the people who were on the tour with us. Most of them are from California and one couple is from Texas. We had a great time with a lot of laughs. As the tasting went on the laughs got louder and longer. A good time was had by all. Yep, even Brenda tasted the wine. Well, she had one sip and poured the rest into my glass. Lucky me.
The next day we went to the open air market in Camucia. If I haven't mentioned it before, Camucia is the center of our world out here in the back lands of Tuscany. This market had everything from shoes to underwear to food. It took up several city blocks and is operated every Thursday from early morning to 1:00 P.M. Everything closes at 1:00 here and reopens at 4:00 P.M. The market, however, does not reopen. Here you see a lady selling cheese. That cheese you see here is Reggiano Parmagiana cut right from the wheel. The price here is comparable to what you would find in the US.
No, your eyes are not deceiving you. As I said you can buy anything here. This lady is buying a live chicken that she will probably have for her next meal. There were at least two vendors selling live chickens that we saw. There could have been more. I also saw live pigeons being sold. That's the thing about Tuscan food. Everything is cooked fresh. That is why it taste so good. If it is not in season, you don't get it. To me the food I have had here is the best I have ever tasted. It just has a fresher taste than at home. The cheapest olive oil here tastes better than our expensive oil.
Porchetta, the Italian word for a "heart attack" from the oven. You have to have to try this at least once here in Italy, especially the crispy skin. We did buy a mezzo kilo of the greasy stuff. That's about equal to a pound of meat at home. Eating the porchetta is like dying and waking up in heaven, and just you might. There were several vendors selling the porchetta. You could buy a sandwich on a nice crispy roll for 2.75 euros. I might just do that next week. Hey, why not. The last time I had a porchetta was when Chic, by brother's wife, use to get it from her fathers' store and cook it to perfection with the crispy skin and all.
On the way home from the market I spotted this vineyard near IL MOLINO harvesting the grapes. Here you can see the tubs of grapes at the end of each row. There were several people picking the grapes, putting them in these tubs and a tractor would come along and pick up the tubs and bring them to the end of the row.
Look how long the row is. What a beautiful site, especially if you are a wine drinker.
I want that tub of grapes.
Oh my God. What is this all about. I am going to investigate. If I find out something I will let you know. Stay tuned for more to come.
Dad,
ReplyDeleteGreat blog so far. When I read it, it feels like I'm there except for the smell and the taste and the views, and the desk I'm sitting behind.
Keep them coming.