The gift to savour

The magic of December is unique: whether you are one of those who start counting down to Christmas as early as August or whether you have a modern-day Ebenezer Scrooge relationship with the holiday, either way, the end-of-year atmosphere will hit you. Children start writing letters promising to be good, Christmas songs soon become the soundtrack of our days, decorated trees and twinkling lights decorate every corner of homes and cities. In this festive atmosphere, organising dinners and banquets of good wishes, we find ourselves scrambling to find the perfect gift idea. The Saturnalia, ancient Roman festivals to which we can trace the traditional custom of exchanging gifts, included wooden figurines or laurel branches and mistletoe… they certainly wouldn’t be too popular today, however. Not even the knitted jumper three sizes bigger ‘so you grow into it’, made with love and a skill now rare by patient grandmothers, seems to appeal. So what? How to amaze, by giving something unique and original?

For those who love food and wine, it is certainly possible to wander through this world, creating hampers and packages full of artisanal delicacies, traditional food goodness and rare bottles. But today we want to give you ideas so that your gift is a real experience. And our wine cellars will help.

TASTING WITH A VIEW

Food and drink are one of the most underrated gift ideas by those who give them, but among the most appreciated by those who receive them: they don’t accumulate dust, they can be enjoyed over time and they can also be shared. In order to avoid mistakes in taste, why not allow people to make tasty purchases directly from the manufacturer? In fact, if you have friends and acquaintances who love good wine, you can give them a visit to a winery with wine tasting: the Podere Palazzo family will welcome you to one of the most evocative corners of the Romagna hills to immerse you in all that a winery guards and tells. Treat yourself to a unique experience made up of nature and emotions, taste and regional traditions: a journey that begins with a walk through the vineyards admiring the panorama overlooking the Adriatic Sea and ends with a taste of gastronomic traditions. The discovery of Sangiovese combined with typical specialities will allow you to enjoy both a story and a sensory experience: in the winery, they will then be able to give you the best advice if you want to take home the memory of these moments, in a bottle.

In this way, it is not the gift itself that will be lasting, but the memory of the moment experienced, the emotions and the stories of those who shared a piece of their own history with you.

ATHLETE’S VINEYARD

We all have the sporty friend, the lover of nature as a space for physical activity and the fan of the latest equipment. Well, just for these friends we have thought of a gift that combines the thrill of a ride with the goodness of a tasting. The hills of Pavia’s Olptrepò offer little-known views, and La Casaia has come up with a proposal to show them around while discovering their gastronomic wonders. The route they propose is also suitable for those who are not trained to tackle the Gimondi granfondo (a famous Italian bicycle race – A/N): the beauty of the bicycle meets the convenience of assisted pedalling. A gift experience that will allow you to rent an Ebike and take a tour of the vineyards: it is up to you whether to lose yourself among the rows of vines on your own or with a guide.

And after so much effort, the deserved prize: not a trophy or a medal, but better! At the end of the outing, a wine tasting and local cured meats: Roberto and Vittorio are two friends who have made a passion their profession, but not only… their life. They will welcome you with their bottles to tell you about a dream, their project and their reality; it will be like being at a family table, with those friends who always bring good wine and a good reason to toast.

DISCOVERING WINE, STEP BY STEP

A passion like that for wine is often shared with friends and relatives and leads us to try new bottles with them, but sometimes curiosity drives us further: how is wine made? What craftsmanship makes it possible to arrive at a bottle capable of encapsulating history and territory? If you have friends interested in discovering the wine production chain, the Torre Fornello winery will be able to answer their curiosity. By giving them a visit with wine tasting you will be able to get to know the path of the grapes, from the vineyard to the bottle, discovering each stage through the words and hands of those who care for and work the grapes every day. 

The hospitality and goodness of Piacenza’s culture will then be the protagonist of the subsequent tasting: assorted cold cuts and homemade bread will not be missing from the table, with the wines being tasted. From the 16th century cellars where the wines rest and refine, you will be able to go back to the present, in a setting that will amaze you with the presence of art and beauty. The Brera Academy and young masters in fact collaborate with the winery, so that the journey through the vineyard is not only one of natural beauty, but also of art and sculptural charm, to make culture a timeless gift.

FAMILY LUNCHES

The most beautiful aspect of these festivities is the sharing, which often brings us to the table: enjoying delicacies prepared with love is a unique way to appreciate the festivities with those you love. Menus often feature family recipes that are repeated the same every year: some people protest at the monotony, but after all, if they did not find certain dishes on the Christmas table they would be disappointed. Repetition in this case is almost a pleasant confirmation, a reminder that in a hectic life of change some things remain firm, traditions that are handed down and accompany the passing of the years. 

Precisely because the family lunch is such an ingrained custom in our culture, why not give the opportunity to enjoy an original one? In a convivial atmosphere amidst olive groves and vineyards, the Dei Principi di Spadafora winery will welcome you for a lunch with a tasting of three wines: a visit to the winery will let you discover their world of family passion, organic production and care for nature. Giving the gift of “Lunch – Family Lunch” will give you the memory of the tables set during the holidays, the family atmosphere and the flavours of Sicily: an experience to be enjoyed with the mouth and the heart. 

A bottle of good wine is a gift you can’t go wrong with, whatever the #Character of the recipient you are sure to find a label that will impress him. And if your acquaintances are teetotalers, we have the right guide for them too. An experience, however, may indeed be the gift that can take the magic of the holidays a little further, into the months when lights and streamers will disappear, but the desire to celebrate will not.