Friday Photos ~ September 30th, 2019


It has been a fun-filled, very busy week as we have family visiting and we are trying to share with them a little of the Italy we love so much. They arrived Saturday and Sunday we headed to Montefalco for Festa della Vendemmia, the annual wine festival to celebrate the start of the grape harvest. During the Vendemmia, many of the cantinas around Montefalco gather together in a large room where you can taste all of their wines for a nominal fee. Later in the afternoon, there is a parade of floats decorated with everything grapes and pulled by tractors. They then gather in a large parking lot, and the atmosphere becomes a big party as the local farms share free wine and food.

Tuesday we headed to Chianti to do even more wine tasting at the consortium there before heading to Panzano and Antico Maccelleria Cecchini to see Dario Cecchini and enjoy his amazing MacDario lunch. Afterward, my husband wanted to visit an olive grove for a friend close to Pisa, so we then headed there and then after we made a quick stop in Pisa to see the leaning tower. I hadn’t been to Pisa in over thirty years, and the leaning tower is still as amazing to see as it was the first time.

Wednesday afternoon we explored the pretty Umbrian hill town of Spello before heading to Trevi for a fantastic truffle meal at San Pietro in Pettine. Course after course was enjoyed, all topped with shaved summer truffles. Thursday was the highlight of our week as we all headed up to Pettino, a small town in the mountains next to Trevi for a full day of truffles. We first went on a truffle hunt with the experienced guides and truffle dogs and then they drove us up to the top of the mountain where they cooked us scrambled eggs topped with shaved truffles which we enjoyed along with glasses of Prosecco. Afterward, Francesca made us a fantastic meal of truffle pasta and meats. Our week was undoubtedly full of wine and truffles! Tomorrow we head down to Puglia where we will gorge ourselves on fresh seafood and explore some of Puglia’s breathtaking cities.

Wine Tasting in Montefalco

Festa della Vendemmia

Wine Tasting in Greve in Chianti

Dario Cecchini with my husband & his brother Joe in Panzano.

Leaning tower of Pisa.

The gorgeous flower lined streets of Spello.

Typical store selling Umbrian products in Spello.

Spello

Weighing the truffles after the hunt.

Luca digging for the truffles after the dog found them.

Wild Foods

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Deborah Mele 2019

11 Comments

  1. My husband and I were in Spello last year for their flower festival. It was so beautiful. I thought the town looked like Architectural Digest has designed it – truly magical.

  2. Your pictures are so beautiful. I love your stories and recipes. I look forward to your next adventures❤️❤️

  3. Thank you for what you do. My wife and I enjoy your blog and the recipes. We are both first generations Italians.

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