Last Minute Offers at Villa Bastiola

Tweet

Share

There is a new delicious property on ThriftyUmbria.com, its name is Villa Bastiola, and you may already have encountered this charming property in Umbria on the Internet.
We are glad to have it on our website and happy to kick off with a nice last minute offer on the property. From May 14 until June 18, 2011 the owner offers a 10% discount over weekly rates for an even more special self catering holiday in this luxurious private villa in Umbria. Discover even more offers at the official site of www.villabastiola.com.

Recently remodeled, and surrounded by a perfectly groomed garden, your holidays are going to be a treat at Villa Bastiola. Did you know that the property sits right by the border between Tuscany and Umbria? This means you can have the best of the two regions. The location is near everything and just a short drive from must-see towns like Cortona in Tuscany, Spello, Gubbio, Perugia, Assisi, Todi, Orvieto and many more.

What's more, since Perugia's airport started taking in international flights a few years ago, you can get to Villa Bastiola in a jiffy. Take a direct flight from the UK and half hour after landing you will be in the lap of this heaven in the green heart of Italy, as Umbria is often referred to. This is no exaggeration. At the villa you have the tangible feeling of being far from everything. You will have a rare sense of peace in the comfort of this home in Umbria, and remain in awe every morning while having breakfast in front of one of the most inspiring sceneries in the world. Yet, you will be close to many world-celebrated sights.

Rest assured that there is not a hint of cliché at Villa Bastiola. It hardly gets better than this, especially with such unbeatable prices to treat yourself to a luxury holiday in Umbria.

Villas in Umbria Cheaper Than Hotels

Tweet

Share

As the world discovered Tuscany with movies along with narrative, its neighbor toward the east, Umbria, lay similar to an unmoved gem. As many have said: Umbria is Tuscany just without the mob. Undulating mountains and fertile valleys display forests of elm and chestnut. Medieval bastions and monasteries lace the countryside. Lakes and watercourses wind around ancient watchtowers and castles. Even Rome's powerful Tiber river comes into being in Umbria. In case you were bearing in mind a vacation to Italy it follows that it would be highly worth your time to look into Umbria.

Villas could be hired in Umbria for a lower price than a hotel room, moreover for that rental price you are given medieval townships, handcrafted terracotta, in addition to incredible scenery. There are lakes and slow rivers to go fishing in, hills to walk and local diners where to take a seat and check out the local food. You can see monasteries and wineries, or else go to a dairy to comprehend how cheese manufacturers keep their ancient ability. There are lots of things to catch a glimpse of and do in Umbria, for which you may well never trouble sightseeing Rome to the south or else Tuscany to the east, however you may possibly do so in case you thus desire. They are adjacent.

To explore your rental options is as effortless as getting on the Internet. A large number of options are untaken. Easily seek villa rentals in Umbria to get plenty of results. Renting a country house online is as uncomplicated as any other Internet buy. Glance at photos of villas and apartments and decide on your ideal vacation. Villa lettings in Umbria have turned into an inexpensive means to visit all the places of interest in Italy.

What to Do: Clubs and Diners in Umbria

Tweet

Share

Additional things to do in Umbria! If you do not know the region properly, here are some suggestions about how to pass your evening in Umbria.

Clubs and Discos
Umbria is one of the best destinations for those longing for an impressive night of entertainment, since this site is rich in world's most excellent discos. One of the most interesting traits of clubs includes their large dance floors.
Discos here include established DJ's who excite and galvanize vacationers by performing the most popular international music. Here one could spot among the most modish clubbing crowd of Italy.

Food and Wine Tasting
Umbria abounds with world's best bars wherein visitors are able to sample the most striking kinds of wines. Vacationers can satisfy their wine appetites since bars here offer sweet, middle sweet and partially sweet kinds of wine, which are deemed as the most popular wines in the full Italian territory.

All the taverns in this region are famous because of their unsurpassed and proficient bar service delivered by classy and respectful bartenders who have a reliable knowledge of pleasing visitors thanks to their engaging and still skilled approach. Umbria is well-known for having efficient eateries such as restaurants providing delightful Italian cuisine to visitors. Eating out or even buying regional food from street markets makes self-catering holidays stimulating and simple.

Spring Months in Umbria

Tweet

Share

The vivid region of Umbria in Italy offers pleasant tours in the vicinity of its very old hill townships. You will dream up of yourself inside a work of art of a master painter whilst traveling the teeny back roads besides shining watercourses and having the peaceful view of chestnut trees as well as prosperous elms along the hillsides.

Assisi is well-known for the Church of Saint Francis, and draws countless pilgrims. The village was completely rebuilt next the destructive earthquake in 1997. Saint Francis was born in Assisi during 1181 then inspired by the outstanding Tiber Basin. You may still encounter that stirring panorama across the valley from the mysterious stronghold of Rocca Maggiore.

You can walk around the most delightful riches all over the places in Umbria. The historical municipality of Spello is extremely calm and liberated of car traffic. It is well-known due to the ancient fortifications that are over 2 thousand years old. See the church from the 13th century then appreciate the amazing Pinturicchio's murals. Bevagna is a minute settlement and to my surprise not a hill village. At this juncture, you will stumble on Roman remains, pretty houses of worship and a wonderful theater dating from the 19th century.

Find the hill towns through Umbria by car from March through May and September through November. Stay away from the peak season in summer, once the region is packed. Pass a minimum of a week in Umbria, but in case you have the chance, stick three to four weeks.

New Property: Umbria Camping Badiaccia

Tweet

Share

For more information on Camping Badiaccia, visit the listing on ThriftyUmbria.com!

Camping Badiaccia is congenially sited on the edges of Trasimeno Lake. Encircled by the flourishing knolls of green Umbria, it proposes a wonderful starting place for expeditions to the most essential archaeological and cultural sites of Italy.

Badiaccia is the spot to stay for those in pursuit of a calming holiday in a friendly environment. The attentive and experienced personnel is largely supportive in getting the most out of your sojourn, supported with high standard facilities, which are complimentary, such as: hot showers, reserved beach, two swimming pools, tennis pitch, beachvolley, football, basketball, bocce, minigolf, playing field, TV area and a team of animators who will cheer up your days with performances, games, child club, party nights and more.

During the morning and in the afternoon a multi language and experienced staff arranges a program made of tournaments and very funny sports competitions to divert the youngest visitors. For sport enthusiasts the camping provides plenty of alternatives, while the lake offers the chance to practice different water sports.

The swimming pool for adults is in a vast verdant plot and is an ideal encounter spot both for swimming and tanning fans and for visitors looking for rest.
The swimming pool for kids is on the Trasimeno Lake coast and presents the possibility of having amusement with numerous water games.
The camping includes a sizable sandy beach delimited by verdant lawn. You may use deck chairs and seaside umbrellas without charge, and let kayaks and water-bikes.
Camping Badiaccia also features a broadband Internet Point and WiFi.

Among the accommodations offered are cottages, mobilehomes and chalets. Separated from the camping grounds and on the edge of the Trasimeno Lake you can moreover rent Umbria apartment homes and private villettes. On site you will discover all conveniences such as a relaxed bar, a diner and a small grocery for your pressing necessities.

Useful Umbrian Resources

Tweet

Share

Umbria is celebrated throughout the world due to its jazz happenings, and the Cultural Association Charlie has structured concerts and meetings for Terni in Jazz. This website provides information on dates, places, and costs of the concerts. Take a peek at the agenda and decide ahead of time how you would enjoy to participate. There will even be an evening committed to ear education, therefore you can better understand the variances between swing, blues, jazz, R&B and bebop. You are able to also partake in classes in relation to music history and writing and a great deal more.

Umbria and Arte is the appellation of this local site which deals with art, tourism and culture. You can locate facts on villas, lodges, country dwellings, and bed and breakfast houses, thus you will be able to prepare your idyllic holiday in Umbria. However, unfortunately this website is only available in Italian for now. There is a large section devoted to happenings encouraged by the region: exhibits, fairs, educational happenings, shows, plus cooking and wine events. If you are a cuisine and wine follower, you may find recommended itineraries which involve wine, olive oil and Umbrian cooking tasting.

Even though Umbriaeventi is presently just in Italian, it offers a notable quantity of info on happenings, fairs and events all over Umbria, including dates and contacts. It is furthermore possible to look through a sizable list of hotels, cottages, and country residences in case you are looking for accommodations close by the event you would like to enjoy.

Orvieto Classico Doc, Excellent White Wine from Umbria

Tweet

Share

Orvieto is a tiny town including 20 thousand habitants in southwestern Umbria, sited on the plane on top of a large mass of volcanic tuff; that tuff, with its approximately vertical flanks, completed the defensive fortifications built with the same sandstone. Once you enter Orvieto you will spot, in the central piazza, an extraordinary Cathedral. Built within 100 years between 1300 and 1400, it is one of the peak expressions of Gothic art within central Italy.

Historically, the knolls in the center of the Italian peninsula feature many days of large amounts of sunshine with pleasant temperatures, greatly beneficial for wine production. If you want a good Umbrian wine to purchase while eating fish, there are no hesitations, you must acquire Orvieto Classico D.o.c.
This wine has a very extended history. As you might be familiar with, Italy was famous by the Greeks as Enotria, the Country of Wine. Orvieto's white wine is called the Pope's wine, since it was the chosen wine of the Pope since the middle-ages. It is a characteristic Italian white, made with indigenous varieties: 40% Grechetto, 30% Trebbiano and 30% Malvasia matured in vineyards surrounding the famous hilltop settlement of Orvieto.

This vintage is the single one I can nip through the summer, nicely refrigerated and drunk throughout the burning summer times. All through June, July and August, temperatures are above 30 Celsius in any given day, with nighttimes chilling to 25 Celsius. That is why wine may be drunk only through the evening, so a low proof wine such as Orvieto Classico is just right. It is amongst the most amiable wines, with its 12 degrees.
Also, the price at the source is exceptionally low-cost. Merely 5 euros a bottle, even though I bet out of the country it can cost up to 12 dollars. Finding such a good wine this cheap is not simple. Always bear in mind to check for the D.O.C. label, the wine's credential of derivation.

Umbria B&B La Tartaruga

Tweet

Share

On ThriftyUmbria.com a new property has arrived featuring splendid settings, modern amenities and a swimming pool at very minimal prices per week or per day.

La Tartaruga Bed and Breakfast is set in the emerald rises of Umbria wherein spiritual atmosphere, tradition, beauty and fine art mix together perfectly.

It will be splendid to lose oneself in the nuances of color of this enchanting countryside, which looks like a watercolor by Perugino. Here the rural way of life has never been forgotten .

Get trapped in the ideal harmony connecting art and nature, surroundings and structural design, town and rural area. For the period of your vacation take pleasure in the culinary delights of this wonderful place.

The family-run Umbria bed and breakfast La Tartaruga is a welcoming home, a special place to enjoy your vacations in absolute relaxation.

The apartment houses benefit from a wonderful panoramic view of the hills around Niccone, individual access, and are stylishly furnished and set with all the accessories for your comfort. In the summer the outside pool is also accessible.

All apartment buildings are outfitted including all modern conveniences, washer, TV, dishwasher in addition to all the necessary for a self-catering holiday in Umbria.

Nuvola is a lovely apartment on two floors. On the outside a small court is best for outside dining. Indoors, you discover a comfortable living room with fireplace and cookery area. One floor above there are two double bedrooms, one of which provided with a little terrace, from where you will take pleasure in marvelous panoramas.

Arcobaleno apartment is a recent construction accessed by a private courtyard ideal for al fresco dining in fine weather days.
Upon entering we find ourselves in the living room, outfitted with a lovely fireplace and open kitchen. A small hallway directs us inside the Camera Rossa bedroom and Camera Azzurra room, both double. At the end of the corridor we locate the restroom, wonderfully decorated and outfitted including shower and washing machine.

The Golden Soil of Umbria: Truffles

Tweet

Share

Hunting truffles in Umbria is a very fun, gratifying and appetizing experience to try.
Jointly with expert truffle hunters with their dogs you will start a hunt for the prized tubers. You will firstly greet your guides and after that drive on the way to the truffle growing soils, a small fenced in corner within the woods. Truffle lands within the wild are undisclosed and truffle hunters reveal them merely in the closest ring of family constituents, if they are revealed at all. You will get to know these locations and the dogs utilized to dig up truffles.

The dogs, once liberated, are off so promptly you can hardly follow them. After a few moments scuttling you will notice them starting to dig with all their powers and its owners having a tough time holding them back. Unlike hogs, dogs do not munch up the truffles in a rush. But, a truffle is delicate and smashed rapidly by pointed teeth and big paws.

In conclusion, the truffle is dug exposed via the petite truffle hunters spade. Still muddy and rather unimpressive it has nevertheless the unique truffle scent and as expected everybody wants to smell it. Of course the finder gets its dog treat, a primary thing of truffle dog education. The expedition goes on whilst truffle seekers carry on to describe more concerning truffles and truffle searching.

After practically an hour you will feel a tad worn out and if you are lucky your bag will be rather heavy with truffles you will get to keep and taste at your table.

Daytrips, Events and Shopping in Umbria

Tweet

Share

Daytrips
Going to places of interest is a very important vacation interest for all those coming to Umbria on a break. It is sensible for the sightseers to check out municipalities, such as, Assisi, Deruta, Orvieto and Spoleto in order to see the diverse attractions, such as Basilica di San Francesco, situated in such spots.
Umbria is abundant in world's finest exhibitions such as Museo Regionale della Ceramica that tourists are able to explore in order to obtain the information of advancement of ceramic objects. Vacationers have to check out the famous Etruscan crypts in this part. Umbria proffers the world's most excellent civilizing sites together with art galleries such as the National Gallery in which day-trippers may check out astounding assortments of Umbrian artworks including the incredibly famed Perugino paintings.

Music festivals and Events
Sightseers have to go to the annual festivals in this county which include the Kite Festival Painting the Skies, Christmas in Umbria, Floral Decorations during Corpus Christi and National Horse Fair.
Umbria is illustrious for its music festivals such as Umbria Jazz, Todi Festival, and Perugia Classico happening during the end of September. All the events and celebrations will undoubtedly stun vacationers.

Shopping Sprees
Ceramic objects shops border Via Duomo. Umbria is increasingly popular like the best shopping destination for ceramics and firms are dedicated to provide unmatched examples of earthenware for visitors coming here from all over the globe. Umbria is the perfect site available to check out the most amazing array of marionettes and wood sculptures.
This spot is copious in historic stores offering the world's best variety of antiques and striking precious stone tabletops.

Hotel Italia on ThriftyUmbria.com

Tweet

Share

A new property, Hotel Italia is listed on ThriftyUmbria.com and as usual it is an excellent place with great reviews and prices.

The building, thanks to its antique location, reflects the sophistication of the hotel's surroundings.
The hotel, in addition, features a more contemporary part keeping the level of elegance of the property unchanged.

It includes 37 bedrooms, 7 of which are suites, equipped including every modern comfort:
air conditioning, fridge bar, hot tub, sat TV, free Internet connection, phone with fax, and complimentary parking for all customers.

The structure was an ancient residence endowed to aristocratic families.
During the 19th century the rooms now adopted for the restaurant used to be the house of the Antonietti family along with Colomba, a brave woman of the Italian Risorgimento period who battled and lost her life in the strive for a unified Italy.

The hotel nowadays is a one-of-a-kind sample which has been wholly renovated to its former grandeur, returning to its dignified status, inside the historic center of Foligno, servicing class in addition to a hospitable reception from the management.

Tradition Rooms
The hospitable character of the traditional furniture, golden shades along with touches of amethyst and turquoise, take you in the past to the era whilst the edifice used to be visited by Perugino during a moment of art, mysticism, history and nature.

Refinement Rooms
Drapes and curtains, excellently styled in drapery, lovely furniture in absolute concord with the context, providing a sumptuousness which adds to the vast selection of enriching estates which the municipality has.

Modernity Rooms
Spacey rooms, elemental and linear design, and stylish decorations differentiate these rooms. Unique furniture designed with just comfort and stylishness in mind, provided only by the utmost excellence of materials.

The dining room displays an Old-World flair, delicately furnished, the walls and flooring having been totally returned to their past majesty, giving you the feel of stepping back in time as you enter the room.
The kitchen tenders freshly prepared Umbrian delicacies and mouth-watering desserts. The wine cellar tenders an excellent variety of vintages both from the surrounding lands and national and worldwide varieties.

Find Hotel Italia on ThriftyUmbria.com.

150 Years of Italy!

Tweet

Share

March 17 is the day Italy was proclaimed a united country by King Victor Emmanuel II with its capital in Rome, although the city was still part of the Vatican's possessions. It was 1861 and today it is the 150th anniversary celebrating that proclamation.
Umbria, just like Rome, used to be part of the Papal states. The Catholic Church had gotten hold of it during the 14th century, and apart for a brief Napoleonic interruption, did not let go off of it until the unification of Italy, when Umbria became part of the new state.

What is doing Umbria to celebrate its independence from the Vatican and Italy's unification? Almost all towns and cities have their own celebration commemorating the salient moments of the proclamation of Italy and remembering those who fought besides Garibaldi to liberate the peninsula. Some towns, like Amelia, are even renaming important squares to "Piazza Unità d'Italia", to commemorate this date. Many towns stage theatrical performances themed around the Italian Risorgimento and offer visits to places of significance for this historic event.

In addition, there are many resorts, villas, B&Bs and farmhouses offering discounted stays for the long weekend from today to next Sunday March 20. IN addition, with the season warming up, a visit at the thermal towns of Fontecchio, Sangemini, Acquasparta, Massa Martana, Spello, and Assisi would be excellent. Any occasion is perfect to relax in Umbria, and these days of holidays are perfect for a short vacation in thermal waters. Catch the best last minutes!

Umbria Food: Traditional Appetizers and First Courses

Tweet

Share

Umbria has been a countryside territory since forever and its cooking reflects this with uncomplicated, appetizing plates prepared from wholesome ingredients. Local agriculture makes crisp fruit and vegetables, high quality olive oil, pig food and juicy t-bones, while the rivers provide trout, perch, carp, tench, mullet and pike, in addition to the woods mushrooms of honor quality. Lentils, cheese and black truffles arrive from the Valnerina and white truffles from the High Tevere basin. The knolls are carpeted by vineyards that give a fragrant wine to go together the wholesome and appetizing food.

The major food preparation tools are spits and griddles, whilst aromatic herbs offer an unambiguous aroma to the cuisine, and olive oil is an elite dressing. All over the province incomparable pig appetizers can be tasted.

The hog recipes are paired with Torta al Testo based on the standard Perugian technique, sandwiched with ham or sausage or along with the sweet hint of sage and onion; spleen or pounded truffles croutons with anchovies fillets; pancakes called Arvoltolo are eaten hot and sprinkled with salt or sugar. Together with the appetizers, but principally along with an aperitif, black olives savored with orange peel are served.

In the array of first entries there are at least three regional specialities: the Ciriole, home-made egg noodles along with browned onions, garlic and oil. Strascinati are small pasta including sautéed sausage plus eggs mixed together with Parmesan cheese. Whilst Umbrici are hand made spaghetti.

Spaghetti or Risotto could be prepared including grated truffles.

These are just the most traditional dishes. Tomorrow I will list the most popular second courses!

Fresh Food, Vivid Colors and Umbria Lifestyle

Tweet

Share

Among my favorite things to do every week in Umbria is to tour the neighborhood street-markets. You could easily visit a market each day if you chose to, and in truth some mornings there are at least five markets of various sizes running across Umbria. In Italy, markets are likely to alternate from town to township and nearly all bigger towns own their specific market day even if peddlers may well vary. I usually have a propensity to remain near to the markets close to my home, although I do often travel a tad farther to Perugia on Saturdays for the marketplace there.

During Mondays I go to Marsciano, a village of working people including a wide-ranging large marketplace selling heaps of foodstuffs, house linens, and clothes. On Tuesdays I stopover the marketplace in Deruta that is a great deal less important, nevertheless it offers a number of my preferred produce wholesalers. On Thursdays I take a trip in the direction of Ponte San Giovanni, which is a neighborhood near Perugia and has a colossal marketplace that sells almost anything on Earth, including little animals, backyard tools, and numerous street food sellers.

These stand for my three must-know streetmarkets any given week but I furthermore include the immense Saturday market in Perugia. The streetmarket in Perugia could get hours to look through and it's a great excuse to enjoy a calm Saturday morning.

If you take pleasure in cooking, it is impossible not to be moved when you pace throughout an outside market in Umbria. The multitude of bright colors of the numberless goods sold by a variety of retailers, the sublime smells traveling from the roasted hog and fried food truck, and just the bustling energy of the many people moving from stand to stall is simply exciting to me. Italian food is all in relation to using crisp, season ingredients, and I have started the practice of not scheduling my dinner till I look at what strikes as best at the market each day. Whether a pot bursting with small artichokes hits my attention, I sniff a lot of fully matured tomatoes, or else I come across a brimming stall of thick, vivid green fava-beans, I consent to my taste to determine what I'll have at supper every day past my market trip.

Easy Umbria Recipe: Spaghetti al Rancetto

Tweet

Share

A very quick and easy pasta recipe from Umbria. You will be able to prepare this any time you wish and in a few minutes.

Ingredients: One onion, 200 grams of bacon, salt, 350 grams of peeled tomatoes, 400 grams of spaghetti pasta, a small bunch of marjoram, grated pecorino cheese, pepper and olive oil.

Preparation: Dice the onion and the bacon then let saute on slow heat with a little olive oil. When the onion is brown and the bacon nicely melted, add the crushed peeled tomatoes with their liquid. Keep on cooking with the lid partially on over medium-low heat. Add salt to taste and stir every now and then. The tomato will be done when it turns its color from vivid red to a more brownish tint. When done, turn off the heat and ad the minced marjoram.
While the tomato is cooking, fill a pot with about 3 liters of water, add salt to taste, then set on high heat until boiling. Then add the spaghetti pasta and cook as long as indicated on the packaging. When done (make sure to have the sauce ready at this stage) remove fromo heat and with a colander drain the pasta. Set it on the sauce and mix gently while adding the grated pecorino cheese. Buon appetito!
PS: It goes without saying that any type of pasta can be paired with the sauce. It is just that spaghetti are an excellent match.

New Property La Poderina dei Poggi su ThriftyUmbria.com

Tweet

Share

Resting in the fertile Umbrian hills and overlooking the mellow Tuscan landscape, you are able to enjoy extended walks inside La Poderina dei Poggi up to the rim of the woodland or linger during a quite moment in a private spot where the calm is shattered just by the sounds of nature.

For a beneficial and stimulating holiday this farmhouse in Umbria is easy to reach from the most important highways and mass transportation lines. In spite of that it remains removed from the clamor and smog of city life. It is a b&b equipped to accommodate you into its wholly renovated bedrooms, tastefully furnished and fitted by means of every advanced comfort in respect of old local customs.

A cordial and family-like hospitality awaits you in a quiet and comforting haven, in an environment that continues to recognize the genuine rhythms of life. This is a spot where you can experience the calm feeling of wellbeing which comes with being in contact with nature and enjoying the healthy goodness of organic foods.

The estate includes flower gardens and large verdant grounds where visitors are able to enjoy lengthy promenades in the harmony of natural sounds and birds singing. From the house you can gaze past the underlying, vast green valley and glance at the contour of the Tuscan hills, up to the Cetona and Amiata mountains.

The same vista can be enjoyed from the windows and the balconies of this Umbria accommodation and its solarium – a charming watch place. Otherwise, while you go for a dip in the generously-sized swimming pool or join in a game on the multi-purpose playing ground, the splendid surroundings will accompany your every moment.

Sagrantino Wine From Umbria

Tweet

Share

When you think about red wines from Italy, Sangiovese right away pops to mind, and maybe Nebbiolo for those of the Barolo advice. Italy is rich in local grape kinds, but a number of of them are limited to very small territories inside the country and are exported in minor amounts, if at all. One of the best of the indigenous Italian kinds is Sagrantino.
Sagrantino is local to Umbria, recognized as the "green heart of Italy" due to the fertile watercourse valleys located in it. Geographically, it is the single territory in Italy that does not border the sea or another nation. Wine production has a long past here, but commercial wine making is a quite recent phenomenon. Of the 13 DOC areas in Umbria, 11 of them were formed subsequent to 1980. For the most part of the production (70% of the DOC production) the region derives from Orvieto, a white wine which is gradually becoming more and more present within the foreign marketplace.

Virtually all of the Sagrantino grown in the world is cultivated in the township of Montefalco that is pretty much in the heart of Umbria. In 1992, Sagrantino di Montefalco was brought to DOCG class, the uppermost excellence rank in the Italian system. To meet the requirements for the DOCG mark, wines from this district must be made with 100% Sagrantino grapes and be matured for 30 months with at least 12 of those inside oak barrels, prior to being commercialized.

This extended aging time is required as Sagrantino is a powerful little grape. It's concentration of tannins is amongst the highest in the world and it usually demands some longer aging time in the cellar before it is accessible. These wines are not low-cost anywhere owed to the very restricted production.

In the glass, the wine has an opaque, dark black heart and a violet edge. It coats the wineglass as it is swirled around. It is intensely drenched and strong. On the nose, the wine is a tiny timid, but there are smells of cedar and candied black cherries, smoke, and black plums. In the mouth, it is full-bodied and extraordinarily tannic. The tannins are dense, but they actually do not hinder the fruit flavors too much. The aromas are followed well in the mouth with a lot of smoky, mature black fruits all over the palate. If it wasn't for the depth of the fruit, this would be a very austere wine, but as it is, it's merely kind of tough and burly. An aged cheese to go along with this is just about perfect. If you happen to stumble across one of these wines and have some money to spend, I believe you won't be dissatisfied. It's not something I'd look to glug down consistently, however it's an exceptional, high class wine that's a wonderful match for rich main courses.

Hotel Villa Fiorita in Foligno, Umbria

Tweet

Share

Hotel Villa Fiorita is located in the heart of the Appenine Plateau, 800 meters over sea level in the idyllic climate and green hills of the Umbria and Marche regions. It is about 200 meters from the Colfiorito Natural Park, zone of global interest due to its prosperous range of fauna and plants. The ideal climate and the surrounding natural landscape make this hotel an astonishing place for your relaxing and healthful vacations in Umbria, Italy.

In addition, you can find a great variety of locations for walking tours and journeys in the direction of the most significant and attractive artistic resorts in Umbria such as Foligno, Assisi, Perugia, Frasassi Caves, Nocera, Marmore falls, Trevi, Spello, Todi, Gubbio, Spoleto, Camerino with its university and so on. The hotel is managed by the owner himself, who boasts a thirty-year practice. He will welcome you warmly, like only a true Italian hotelier can do!

Wellness hotel Villa Fiorita Spa has a well-equipped fitness center with Finnish steam bath, Turkish bath, Jacuzzi, swimming pool with hydro massage, and in addition a beauty-farm where you can try beauty treatments and mud baths.

Check out our last minute promotions! You can hit upon special week-end offers!

The restaurant suggests classic Umbrian cooking such as whole Colfiorito lentils, Colfiorito red potato gnocchi, truffle specialties, porcini mushrooms, Umbrian olive oil and wine.

Each room has a superior standard of comfort. In each one you will find a hairdryer, fridge bar, TV, phone and reserved terrace. Rooms with whirlpool tub are available by request. The hotel in addition has a reserved park, TV room, banquet room, hairdresser, wheelchair access and reserved parking to provide you all the comforts you need.
The Villa Fiorita hotel includes a superior Suite with:
- bathtub with spa and jacuzzi for 2 persons and international channels television.
- canopy bed
- shower with spa
- personal terrace with wooden roofing and parlor, where breakfast and dinner can be served directly upon request.

Services:
Restaurant with own specialties, lush exclusive park, mountain bike on hand in the riding and rafting surroundings

The hotel is encircled by wonderful landscapes and nearby many towns of artistic significance and beautiful places to go to. Through your lodge you can enjoy yourselves both visiting and relaxing at our hotel.

A pleasant and quiet ambiance will embrace visitors in the wellness center.
Special featured services are the bath with hot tub and jacuzzi, sauna and steam bath outfitted with aromatherapy, chromatherapy and music therapy, soothing room with relax beds to feel rejuvenated afterward treatments. Moreover accessible the health center and beauty farm with mud-bath treatments, attended by expert and professional staff.

At the hotel you can also find two apartments for families, with 4 beds each.

The Villa Fiorita hotel offers all the services of modern life to its guests, to ensure a lovely vacation with all comforts.

Orvieto: Places to Eat and Hang Out

Tweet

Share

Novel from an intercontinental flight, you’re traveling wearily from side to side in Umbria when Orvieto materializes soaring on top of its Tufa boulder rise right on time for a wholesome, re-invigorating eating. A real haven.

I regularly send guests to Trattoria dell’Orso situated at 18 Via della Misericordia in Orvieto. Here the owners have been welcoming visitors kindly for every one of the 12 years I’ve been working in Italy. Be forewarned: they habitually close up during the entire month of July.

For fidgety children, I recommend the Orvieto Underground tour. The ticketing booth is on the other side of the Duomo door and is a bit vague, but trust me: the visit is crammed with a wealth of sets of steps, some very high, narrow spaces and low clearances.

If you are a person, you like gelato. And if you like gelato, you ought to journey to the far corner of the Duomo square for dessert at Piazza del Duomo, 14. Hang about in Orvieto until 4pm and join in the "passegiata" promenading with the local natives whilst eating gelato.

For those younger and à la mode – if you are above 21 and can stay up after 10 – the place to be in Orvieto is in Piazza Marconi 2 at Velia’s Champagneria immediately out the Piazza of the Duomo. Very comfortable and appealing, this hip kitchen and bar pours with an enviable cascade of delicious food and sparkling sweetness.

Originally taken from http://homebaseabroad.com/

Torta al Testo, An Umbria Delicacy

Tweet

Share

Torta al Testo is a habitual flat bread from Umbria made with water, flour, salt and bicarbonate of soda. The appellation “testo”, or head, refers to a big level stone on top of which the bread is baked.
There are many eateries in Umbria that dish up Torta al Testo together with fillings like ham, sausage, grilled vegetables and cheese. If you like you can consider it as an Umbrian variety of fast food. I stopped at an eatery on the south-east part of Lake Trasimeno just yesterday and ordered this yummy torta al testo filled with eggplant and sausage, not a bad eating for just 3.80 Euros!

Search for Torta al Testo whilst you vacation in Umbria, this charming section of Italy has magnificent landscapes of forested hills, hilltop villages, vineyards, castles, olive groves and Italy’s fourth biggest lake, the Trasimeno. It furthermore makes for a supreme base to travel around this prominent Italian territory; most of the foremost intellectual sights of central Italy can be enjoyed on day trips from this area.