Charming Franciacorta
If you’ve never heard of Franciacorta, you’re in good company. I’d never heard of it either, but Mr T was excited when we got an unexpected gap in our schedule and could fit in another stop. And after our visit, I have to say I’m the area’s number one fan.
The Italians have rather selfishly been keeping this place to themselves for quite some time. I can’t say I blame them. If I had an incredible place with beautiful mountains, a crystal clear lake, great wine, and amazing food on my doorstep, I wouldn’t be telling anyone about it either. But tell you I must, because I don’t want you to miss out on Italy’s best kept secret.
Franciacorta stretches from the foot of the Alps down to the shore of Lake Iseo, the smallest of the Lombardy lakes. While Lake Como is known for it’s glitz and glamour, and Lake Garda is the regal Grand Dame, Lake Iseo is quietly going about it’s business being stunning and delightful, whether you notice or not.
In the middle of Lake Iseo stands Monte Isola, Europe’s biggest lake island. We decided to make it our first stop because it’s a cracking place for a hike. There are no cars on the island and it's covered with great walking tracks, so we packed a picnic and headed to Iseo to catch the ferry. The good thing about Italy is dogs are allowed almost everywhere, so the WonderDog gets to come with us wherever we go. The not so good news for her was that on the ferry, dogs are required to wear a muzzle. I didn’t think it was possible for a dog to be mortified, but that perfectly describes the look Shadow gave us as we were fitting a muzzle ever so loosely on her snout. Never have you seen a sadder sight in all your life. But the ride was only 20 minutes, the muzzle was so loose it practically wasn’t on at all, and she made out just fine on the cheese treat front, so don’t be feeling sorry for her!
From the tiny fishing village of Peschiera Maraglio, it’s a straight-up-the-mountain kind of hike, to a small chapel called Santuario della Madonna della Ceriola about 600 metres up. Don't expect to find the trail straight away, they are still getting used to tourists here so things aren't as clearly marked as you might think. But just keep going upwards on as steep a road as you can find, and eventually you'll hit one of the trails. Once you're on it, you pass by vineyards, chestnut trees and rustic farm houses until you pop out, breathless and sweaty, at the top of the island to admire a stunning view. I imagine it’s rather peaceful up there on your own, listening to the birds singing and wind in the trees. We wouldn’t know, we managed to slog up hill for an hour only to be greeted by an outing of 50 Italian school kids having a picnic at the top, portable speaker blasting some god awful music to boot. Oh well, que será, será! The Wonderdog was a big hit with the Justin Bieber wannabes though, she was thrilled to greet every one her fans.
We took a different route down the hill, passing stunning meadows and woods, listening to the cuckoo all the way. There’s a special sort of peace and quiet on this island (rampaging school kids aside) that you have to experience for yourself. The island has quite a few walking tracks, not all of them as heart pumping as the one we chose, so if you come, try and get the early ferry over and spend the whole day here exploring, enjoying great wine and the local sardines. You won’t regret it.
We had get ourselves back to home base fairly swiftly as we had a tasting at Santa Lucia in Erbusco, a delightful family run winery making some delicious Franciacorta sparkling wine. Pierluigi, his wife, and their two sons run the winery and it was eldest son Gregorio who showed us around, albeit in the pouring rain (our luck with the weather only stretches so far!)
You wouldn't know driving in to Santa Lucia what treasures lie behind the gates. All of the production takes place in a building around Longhi Palace which was built in the 17th Century. The winery and the vineyards that lie just outside it belonged to a noble family centuries ago, until the owner lost the whole estate in a card game. Imagine that! Sorry kids, we have to move out of the palace, Dad had a rough night at the poker table!
Gregorio told us all about the area and it’s an interesting story. Franciacorta is a pretty unique wine region with a fascinating climate and topography, thanks to it's mineral rich glacial soils. The Romans first planted some vineyards in the 1st Century, but the real expertise came from French monks who moved to the area, drained the marsh, planted vineyards and taught the locals how to pick grapes. In exchange, they were granted tax breaks which is where the name comes from. Franciacorta might sound romantic but it actually comes from Franzia Curta or “free tax monastic court” (rolls off the tongue, right?)
History lesson complete, Gregorio poured us three of his Santa Lucia sparkling wines: the Satèn, the Rose and the Pas Dose. If you like French champagne, I think you’re really going to like Franciacorta wine. And Santa Lucia is a great place to start - all their wines are organic, they make a number of wines with much less sugar in them, so it’s not only better for you, but makes you feel much better the morning after. And as if that wasn’t enough, they are all simply delicious. Mr T’s favourite was the Pas Dose, mine was the Satèn, although I could happily drink all three all night long! Satèn is an interesting one to try first because it's a style specific only to Franciacorta with rules on how much sugar, type of grapes used, ageing times and how many bubbles are permitted. The result is right up my alley.
The following day the weather cheered up and we went for a hike along the Antica Strada Valeriana, or ancient road that runs along Lake Iseo. We walked the Sulzano Tassano route which was a lovely stroll through villages, vineyards and olive groves dropping down into the pretty town of Sulzano before heading back to Iseo. You have to watch out for the “raging river” if you go after it’s rained. Look at the skill involves in traversing these wild rapids in the photos below, I was lucky to make it out alive quite honestly. Death defying water navigation aside, it’s a smashing little walk and you can go all the way from Pilzone in the south to Pisogne in the north in about nine hours if you’re up for it. Next time perhaps.
Next up, we’re off to Fossano in Piedmont which is definitely well off the tourist track but offers the promise of some amazing hiking in the Martime Alps. First we collect special guest star Trudy at the airport in Milan for a week of fun with the crew. Can’t wait!
