Autumn in the vineyard, fall foliage and some random tips

Still life Autumn is finally here: it’s the best part of the year for foodies and wine lovers. Harvest is in full swing, it’s the culmination of all the efforts made during the year and there is nothing more touching of the sight of a vineyard full of grapes and people trying to collect. Fatigue is huge, but the satisfaction contagious. If you want to understand the wine mojo, what it means to work in the vineyards and the mixture of passion, luck and ancient magic that regulates the life in the countryside, this is best time to leave for a wine trip!

We have selected some must visit wineries with jaw dropping vineyards, festivals, charming villages surrounded by the colors of autumn, themes and suggestions to guide you through the many opportunities that this wonderful season provides to the thirsty traveler.

Fall foliage of the vines: open air painting

The colors of Serrapetrona Days are getting shorter, the countryside begins to slowly fall asleep and colors become darker, with the leaves tinged with gold drops until they becomes brown, passing through the fiery red shades of the Lambrusco Grasparossa. A stroll through a vineyard surrounded by autumn colors is an experience that restores, stimulates, especially if you like to walk around with a camera in your hands.

Wine festivals

Time to harvest some grapes! After all this hard work at last the wine in resting in the barrels and it is time to celebrate! Do not miss all the wine and harvesting festivities, wine tastings and events. For a complete list of the events, you can take a look to our events page, but, as wine lovers, we we would recommend a visit to the nifty Merano Wine Festival.

Gourmet tours

Castel Thun New friends in the garden! Autumn vegetables have unique and delicious flavors, especially pumpkin, which lends itself to a variety of dishes: squid cream, roasted pumpkin with clams, pumpkin gnocchi with cheese, tempura, but it is also delicious slightly baked and topped with a slice of melted Gorgonzola. The challenge is between Ferrara and Mantua, where the best pumpkins are cultivated: yeah, the recipe we are speaking about is squash ravioli, **tortelli di zucca if you like the Italian sound. Two different recipes—in Mantua are more complex with amaretti and mostarda—in two different lovely cities that deserve both a visit: lots of nice restaurants, monuments and churches, museums and so on. In Ferrara Palazzo dei Diamanti houses works by Zurbarán; in Mantua, Palazzo Te offers “Cupid and Psyche. The tale of the soul. “

Porcini

Castello Estense, Ferrara Borgo Taro, in the heart of the solitary Parma Apennines—where Emilia, Tuscany and Liguria join themselves—is a pleasant village from leave for walk in the woods to hunt for Porcini and wild mushrooms. Remember to take the license daily, mushrooms poaching is not well tolerated. Do not miss Berceto, famous for the Spongata, a delicious cake, and Monte delle Vigne, a winery with rocky reds that do honor to the Apennines.

Törggelen

Travelling in South Tyrol along the wine streets is like being catapulted into a living nativity scene. Idyllic views, amazing villages nestled on the Dolomites, artisans, and to finish the rite of Törggelen that every year celebrates the new wine. It consists of a classic snack of roasted chestnuts, black bread, cheese and cold cuts served on a wooden platter, all young wine, Beaujolais style, and is a great excuse to visit some South Tyrol wineries in search of “serious” wines. Törggelen was born in Valle d’Isarco, but now it has spread all over South Tyrol and Trentino also no shortage of chestnut snacks. For etymology lovers: Törggelen comes from the Latin torculum, press, still in South Tyrol called Torkl.

Apple harvest

We found some new friends in the woods Val di Non, in Trentino, is a stunning valley to visit bite after bite. Along the way to the Dolomites for some trekking and hiking you can taste a fresh apple juice and take a look of the wonderful Castle of Thun and the Sanctuary of San Romedio. Do not miss some strudel and the winery of Panchieri Pietro, where he produces a delicious wine: Groppello di Revò, a rich, supple red wine full of earthy aromas!

Craft Beers Galore

Autumn: it’s time to prepare something good and fatty, like polenta with wild boar ragù, game, duck terrine, chestnuts ravioli, pumpkin lasagna. Strong, earthy flavors that blend perfectly with a nice stout or a brown ale. Why not visit some artisan breweries to try a chestnuts beer? Wait, chestnuts beer, are you serious? Sure and we give a name: Cajun. A brewery hidden in the Mugello region, Tuscan Apennines, in a little city called Marradi, famous for its chestnuts production. If you are in Florence, you can take the train, rent a bike and collect some mushrooms along the way. Sometimes you have to lose yourself in the woods before you can find your beer!

Alfredo Ravanetti