Wine Lunch in the Vineyards of Mt. Vesuvius: After touring Pompeii, I always find myself ready for a nice, relaxing glass of wine! Maybe it’s because of all the pots we’ve just seen used to store the wine in ancient times, or maybe the tired feet!
Either way, there is no better way to rejuvenate the body and absorb what you’ve just seen than to treat yourself to lunch at a nearby winery.
Having witnessed the destruction caused by Mt. Vesuvius, it’s amazing to then experience the abundance of flavors produced by the same volcano.
Not far from the site, you find an enchanting winery that celebrates the volcanic soil from Vesuvius, and the ancient traditions of wine making.
The family will show you around, introduce you to their vines, and even to their new experiment using the ancient technique of aging in terracotta vats inside the ground.
As you learn about the vines and how they thrive here, notice the rose bushes planted on the end of each row. Your guide may explain to you that these are a sort of guardian of the vines.
Roses are fragile, so if something is attacking them, the wine makers then have a warning before it gets to the vines. Very clever!
After a brief and beautiful introduction, take your seat under a grapevine draped pergola and let the sound of the mandolin sooth your soul.
You are in Italy, there’s no forgetting it here!
Soon your majolica tile table is being covered in fresh mozzarella, pecorino, prosciutto, vegetables to make you forget you’ve ever had vegetables before, and of course the wines unique to this area.
This is: “Il Dolce Far Niente”, the sweetness of doing nothing.
It’s in moments like these where passion is born. O Sole Mio playing softly, sunlight dancing on the grapes and in the wine, a gentle, rose scented breeze to cool and calm, and the family inviting you in, laughing, smiling, sharing.
A taste of pure joy to remember forever.
Contact us to plan your trip.
Lindsay Sinko,
Passion for Italy Travel, USA