Petroio - Blogabond

Petroio, Italy

We've been a bit behind on blogs, and have actually been in Tuscany since Tuesday. Our hosts, Ugo and Barbara picked us up from the train station in Orvieto and we drove through the countryside taking the long route back to their house. You know how in movies Tuscany is always portrayed as only consisting of rolling hills covered in vineyards, olive groves, and sunflowers; occasionally interrupted by the Etruscan hill town and towering Cyprus? Yeah...they don't exaggerate. This place is unrealisticly beautiful.

Barbara needed to stop in a bakery on the way home so we pulled up to the village of Pienza and she told us to take a quick walk while she grabbed what she needed, and visit the local cathedral.

The next day we spent acquainting ourselves with Ugo and Barbara, the two cats and two dogs, and what we would be doing while here.

I'll do a detailed blog about their property, Trove, sometime soon but for now here are a few highlights.

The view from my favorite siesta spot, in front of the Mariotti residence

Plumbing here consits of a main tap and a well. The first night was a bit humorus until we got the system worked out. Screw baths, shower under the tuscan stars instead.

Ugo needed to make a quick visit to a friend one night and invited us along and then unexpectedly asked if we'd like to be dropped off at a garden created by a professional landscaper who lives in the area. He didn't tell us anything about the place before hand aside from its ying-yang nature, so we felt like we were walking into the twilight zone walking into this place.

This makes my soul happy

This guy must have a thing for Satyrs, they are tucked away everywhere you look in the garden.

Satyr's, yes thats intentianly plural

Enscribed everywhere are passages, particular words and phrases. Stuff to turn the wheels...I like this guys style

not probable, not impossible, not for case, not unavoidable

Love yall!

written by

Slade's Elucidation on August 9, 2008 from Petroio, Italy

from the travel blog: Slade's Elucidation

tagged Tuscany, BoscoDellaRagnia, Trove and Petroio

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Petroio, Italy

The past few weeks have passed by in a blaze of , well blazes for one. Barbara decided that the Calabroni (aka big fucking hornets that are creepily smart) had lived in the big stump by the house for too long and set the whole thing ablaze. It smoldered throughout the day, and come evening it was still going. To attempt and get water into the centre of the stump the guys tried standing it up and it proceeded to roll down the hill taking out several small trees and landing just a few feet away from the field of dried grass. For obvious reasons this wasn't a good home for the giant flaming log. Never fear, Barbara has a big tractor :P Everyone pitched in to get it back up the hill and onto the gravel drive in a position where it could be properly hosed before we all turned in for the night.

James trying to calm the flams inside the stump

James and Ugo playing with the flaming stump

James unearthed a nest of baby lizards in the process of hatching too, arnt they cuties?

Baby lizards hatching

A day or two later there was a wine tasting in Montepulciano of local wines. Local wines here means the rather famous Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and Rosso di Montepulciano., yummm.

Wine tasting in Montepulciano

Ugo and Barbera chatting ing during the wine tasting

We met two friends of theirs in Montepulciano, Leslie (who is their colleague as well) and Karla (who also does tours back home in Czechoslovakia), and had a lovely evening sipping good wine. On the way home we saw this little cutie hanging out by the road...

Little fox we saw on the way home from a wine tasting in Montepulciano

That weekend Leslie and Karla came to stay at Trove and Saturday Ugo took us on a little sightseeing day trip. One of our first stops of the day was at the monastery where some of the movie The English Patient was filmed. It boasted some wonderful frescos and views of the surrounding countryside.

Frescos in Sant'Anna in Camprena Monastery

View of the Tuscan Countryside

After leaving we drove through the countryside for a bit, just enjoying the stunning senary.

Freshly mowed wheat fields

Close up of wheat fields in Tuscany, loved the lines

Grapes ripening in Tuscany

Ugo suggested we go to the little village of Lucignano d'Asso, so we could take a walk through it. Honestly I think he just wanted an excuse to visit the little grocery/deli that was there. He orded us a bottle of wine and we thought some light nibbles of cheese and what have you. We got a bit more then we anticipated but out of courtesy to the hostess couldn't do anything but eat the juicy fresh cantaloup, tantalizing slices of local dried meats, and cheeses. The meats we superb, I think Beth might have cried tears of joy had she seen those plates coming out ;)

Leslie enjoying the lunch we were suprised with in Lucignano d'asso

Eventually we ended up at the hot springs on the side of Mont Amiata. We swam in a modern swimming pool which has several sections of varying size and temperatures, all fed by thermal waters heated by the volcanic activity of Mont Amiata.

Hot springs bath on MontAmiata

Ancient baths constructed for the hot springs

Have I ever mentioned how much I love bathing in really hot water? Like hot to the point it chases James out of the shower. I could really do with a hotspring in my backyard...would certainly lower our electricity and water bills :P Of course I would also need a backyard again to have a hot spring in it.

We also visited one of my new favorite places again, the garden Bosco dela Ragnaia. This time it was a whole diffrent experiance having Ugo there to play the guide and tell is the meanining of all the words inscribed around the place. I swear this guy reads Conversations With God, and must have a lusty obsesion with good philosiphy.

Leslie and Ugo enjoying the garden

This sign points to a stone with a circle carved in it, you trace the cirlcle three times then sit on the nearby bench to let what ever your own oracle tells you float to the surface of your mind

Sculpture of Pan and a rabbit, Pan looks remarkably like the gardens creator

We were luck enough to meet the creator, and he is the most unassuming guy youd ever meet. There he was just working away on a flower bed in his beat up denim and floppy wide brim hat, humility and warmth eminating from every gesture. He stopped his work long enough to have a quick chat and then politly excused himself and got back to it, he is obviously not a big socializer but still makes you feel welcome.

It's finally cooling off a bit and we've enjoyed several dinners outdoors in one of the courtyards. Nice breeze, good vino, good company...

Ugo and Karla enjoying a drink after a hard day of touring Tuscany

I think I might have mentioned this before, but just in case....

Sunset from Montepulciano

View from a cafe in Montepulciano

I DONT EVER WANT TO LEAVE!

Love you all!

written by

Slade's Elucidation on September 4, 2008 from Petroio, Italy

from the travel blog: Slade's Elucidation

tagged HotSprings, Italy, Tuscany, Petroio and Pienza

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Petroio, Italy

Many of you have been wondering what the hell I've been up too here in the wilds of Tuscany. Vino baby, god I love this stuff, rather surprisingly so considering my original antipathy for everything related to wine.

I've been cleaning out the Mariotties cellar, bottling previous vintages, all in preparation for this years harvest which is just around the corner.

It starts by cleaning out the bottles, anything can effect the taste of wine, and the smallest speck of god knows what can turn a whole demijohn of loveliness into vinegar before you could shout Baccus!

My project, clean vino bottles

I washed all the bottles, and stripped the labels off of many using industrial soda (recycle people!), before drying and crating them to be filled.

Next up you grab a big demijohn from the cellar floor and put it up an the stand. Then you un cork it and suck the oil off the top to see what you have underneath. You top off the wine with oil for preservation reasons. Providing the vino has survived the ageing process your then ready to bottle.

Demejion and bottles to be filled

Next you fill up various sizes of your sparkling bottles and then move them over to the 'corker'. Pop a cork in, slap a label on them and then stick them on the shelves.

Corker

In the end you wind up with something looking a lot like this.

Freshly bottled Vino from the Amalfi Coast

Things here at Trove are, well, rural. They do not sell any wine commercially, the vines and cellar merely support the Mariottie's yearly Vino needs. Yes. Tuscan families DO need their own vineyard and cellar to provide the years wine... God, can I have a villa in Tuscany, pleaaaaase?!?!?!?!

Don't worry, they dont have to hang out in the dark cellar for very long. The 2007 red is my particular favourite. In the states Id never touch reds, here id plug it into an IV if only my veins had taste buds.

Disclaimer for the Moms reading this:

Nope I'm not an alcoholic. In Italy, it is very shameful to be drunk. A mentality I quite agree with, I hate bring drunk and haven't been in a very very long time. Wine, is just....life... here.

Two weeks and counting until the harvest!! I plan to blog the whole process here at Trove so stay tuned ;)

Peace ya'll,
Amanda

written by

Slade's Elucidation on September 17, 2008 from Petroio, Italy

from the travel blog: Slade's Elucidation

tagged Italy, Trove, Petroio and WineCellar

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Tuscany, and a little place by the name or Trove

Petroio, Italy

Fun Times at Trove

Petroio, Italy

Cellar Slave

Petroio, Italy

Heading South?