La Fornace e Montepulciano

Outside Montalcino 31 December 2007

Being in the general region of Italy where Sangiovese grapes are grown and the specific region of Tuscany where Brunello is bottled, we then set forth to find a small vintner from whom to taste.

The entire region is dominated by small farms, each of which seems to specialize in viticulture.

The one that caught our fancy was named La Fornace. Above is the farmhouse. The door at the center leads to the dedicated tasting room.

Can you say atmosphere? So, the above image is the dedicated tasting room. We were privileged to be permitted to partake of delicious Rosso di Montalcino (2005), Brunello (2005), and Brunello (1998). Sadly the 2005 Brunello was not permitted to be sold. Italy has very strict laws governing the bottling of wines. For wine to called "Brunello," it must be made of a certain percentage of locally grown Sangiovese grapes, and it must sit in the bottle for a specific number of days. Once those criteria are met, the government issues a little pink sticker to go over the cork, certifying that the wine is, indeed, Brunello. We were three days shy of the date on which the 2005 Brunello could be sold (i.e. when it would receive the pink sticker). Since the bottles were already labeled, it was illegal for them to sell us the 2005 Brunello. We were able to purchase the 2005 Rossi do Montalcino. We also bought a bottle of the 1998 Brunello, which we are sitting on. The vintner also allowed me to taste his grappa. Grappa is a hard liquor made from distilling the left over stems and must from the winemaking process. I really like it. It reminds me of tequila. If you add grappa to espresso it is called "corretto," or "corrected." Sadly, they were out of bottle of grappa, otherwise I would have bought one of those, as well.

This is the vintner and his dog, Astra.

Astra is very cute.

By the time that we finished at La Fornace, it was beginning to get dark (5pm, or so... it was right after the Solstice). This image captures the last glimmer of sun on the Tuscan landscape between Montalcino and Montepulciano (where they make a damn fine Vino Nobile - Katie and I just drank the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano that we bought. It was transcendant.).

Montepulciano is another picturesque hilltown in southern Tuscany known for its viticulture. It ranks slightly below Montalcino in the quality of its wine. It was also approaching dusk when we arrived. Just after parking the car, I was able to capture the above image, which, I feel, capture the atmosphere of small town Tuscany.

This is the clock tower on the town hall of Montepulciano. Since it was dusk when we arrived (which, on New Years Eve, fell about two hours before the restaurants began to serve dinner), all we did was walk around, take in the sights, and purchase food at an authentic Italian equivalent of a deli. I bought prosciutto for my dad; pasta, cheese, and pancetta for dinner (I cooked spaghetti carbonara for dinner that night - it was damned good!); and we purchased the aforementioned transcendant Vino Nobile. The rapidly diminishing sunlight would preclude further photographs. Another day, another gig of jpegs. The next day is next year. I would travel back in time and trespass, all while my stomach acid slowly digests me. Stay tuned!

Castello di Montalcino

Montalcino 31 December 2007

The above belvedere (beautiful view) shows part of the town and surrounding landscape of Montalcino. Note the natural tinting of the background landscape as it recedes into the distance. This is, of course, a consequence of light being diffused by the air molecules between the camera and the distant landscape. Artists would struggle in the Renaissance to create the illusion of three dimensional space on a two dimensional canvas. The depicting this "Atmospheric Perspective" accurately would greatly help create the illusion of distance. Incidentally, Montalcino is the region in which Brunello, one of the world's finest red wines, is bottled. More on that later.

The above image depicts the curtain wall of the Castello di Montalcino (the castle of Montalcino). The castello served as a defensive space within the town (which is, itself, fairly defensible, as it is high atop a hill). The high curtain walls were designed to withstand a direct attack from Medieval military technology (catapults, trebuchets, ballistas, etc.). An attacker would need to find another way to get to the chewy center of the castle...

Indeed, even getting close to the curtain wall would be difficult. An attacker would need to either scale tall terraced walls, or travel along the winding access road. The latter option would expose the attacker to defensive firepower.

Approaching he wall with the intention of busting through would have been potentially deadly to the Medieval attacker. The protrusion of the towers allowed defenders a stright shot down the length of the wall at potential enemies. They would be sitting ducks for archers.

Incidentally, the castle courtyard affords a glorious vista of the town church. I insisted on walking up to the church, insisting that it was of architectural significance. Sadly, I had mistaken Montalcino for Montecassino. The above church was quite boring, somewhat gaudy, and clearly decorated in the late 19th century. Laaaaaaaame!

If attackers manage to get all the way to the main gate, they face the "Murder Hole." From these slots above, defenders can dump all manner of damaging stuff down on attackers. By "damaging stuff," I mean boiling oil, molten lead, arrows, spit, what have you.

Where's a vat of molten lead when you need it?

The view from the other (non-gate, non-church facing) side of the castle was upon the scenic Tuscan landscape: Vineyards as far as the eye could see. The primary grape grown in this area is the Sangiovese varietal, which produces Rosso di Montalcino and Brunello. The next wing of our journey will involve our efforts to acquire some of that.

I suck, but I intend some day not to.

So, I have been totally lame and have not updated my blog in quite some time. Don't feel left out, I have also barely updated my deviantART page, and I have completely ignored my geocities homepage. Anywho, I hope to remedy all of this in the very near future. Stay tuned!

P. S. In the meantime, check out my older posts using the convenient calendar menu/function, below. There are tons of great photos of Italy, there.