Valpolicella Italy Blog

Properties for Rent

2012-08-09T18:25:00.001+01:00

Ca' Spina is an old country house, renovated in 2011 and made available to those who want to discover our area: Valpolicella, Lessinia, Verona and Lake Garda. We are in the homeland of the famous wines, the important theater of Shakespeare's sighs and murmurs of Dante, the cradle of artistic sculptors, painters and architects; a magical corner of our beautiful Italy!

The cottage is situated close to "Sengia", the ancient village of the marble quarry workers of yore, now crowned with vineyards, olive groves and cherry orchards. It is 600 meters far from the town center and only fifteen minutes from both Verona and Lake Garda.

It 's comfortable for three adults and consists of kitchen, bedroom and bathroom with shower, possibility of extra bed downstairs. The decor is nice and full, and features a fully equipped kitchen, linen room, bathroom and kitchen, two flat-screen TV, washing machine, iron, kettle, toaster, hair dryer, BBQ, heating, air conditioning, wine cellar chilled, wi-fi on request. Outside is a furnished terrace, private parking and an enclosed garden of 1000 square meters.

Ca'Spina is the ideal place for a romantic getaway, a business trip, or even prolonged a relaxing vacation amongst ancient traditions and modern comforts. Our guests will enjoy a delicious local welcome pack. We are open all year, even for one night.

2012-08-09T13:20:00.002+01:00

We are an international team consisting of Italian and English members. Since August 2007 we have worked very closely together combining both our experience and skills. We have enthusiasm and love for the real estate sector, in the magnificent country of Italy.

Our project borns with the support of Cranfield University, United Kingdom.

Services:

Finding the perfect accommodation can be difficult and time-consuming, Valpolicella Homes offers Real Time Availability to allow you the ease to book your vacation rental in Valpolicella and Verona town. Choosing your private villa in Valpolicella for rent is just the beginning of your adventure!

We also know that the process of buying a property in Italy for a non-national is typically a tedious and a stressful process and could be quite difficult for a wide variety reasons.

The dream of tasting the sweet and relaxing life may disappear, especially if you are not accustomed to the culture, process and the "Italian way".

The aim of Valpolicella Homes Ltd is to act as the intermediary between potential property buyers and Italian vendors/sellers in the Valpolicella region.

Valpolicella Homes makes it more enjoyable, efficient, and productive for both parties.

We offer service packages that will cater for varying needs of individuals.

The team is able to offer what people from abroad really want and at the same time help to preserve and enhance the Valpolicella landscape and traditions.

Wine Festivals at Lake Garda

2012-06-03T11:23:00.000+01:00

This weekend (1-3 June) you can taste delicious rosé wines at two wine festivals on the borders of Lake Garda. 'Italia in Rosa' will take place in Moniga del Garda, in the beautiful garden of Villa Bertanzi.

On the boulevard of Bardolino you can taste the famous Chiaretto-wine during the 'Palio del Chiaretto'.

Valpolicella region and its Wine

2012-05-27T16:48:00.001+01:00

The Veneto Primer continues with a focus on Valpolicella, which is the name of a sub-region and its wine. What's the difference between basic Valpolicella and Superiore? What is Ripasso? Get the answers from Marilisa Allegrini.

Valpolicella: The Italy I Don't Want People to Know About

2012-05-25T15:16:00.005+01:00

First, let me explain that my relatives are from Valpolicella, an area just outside Verona. They are rather distant relatives, as correspondence between my grandfather and his parents’ relatives in Italy lapsed as the decades passed, only to be reestablished shortly before his death seventeen years ago.

Soon after my grandfather passed away, I got in touch with one family of relatives and went for a visit. Over the course of several years, I got to know other relatives in other towns. These cousins were from both my great-grandmother's and my great-grandfather’s sides of the family, and all lived within a relatively small radius.

I must also make it clear that Italy—as far I’ve seen—is not the quaint and fetishized fairyland we see in movies like Letters to Juliet and Under the Tuscan Sun. It is the eighth largest economy in the world, it is thoroughly industrialized, and its mode of life is every bit as modern as ours here in America—perhaps more so. And while the escapades of Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi are a salient feature of a mass-media culture every bit as idle and vacuous as our own here in America, no one in Italy, and I mean no one, remotely resembles anyone in the cast of Jersey Shore.

All of this said, the modern and true manifestation of Italian hospitality is evident each time we visit. On this most recent trip, my wife, my father, and I stayed at the home of my father’s cousin Rinalda and her husband Giorgio. Giorgio is the mayor of Negrar, a municipality to the north of Verona. He is very proud of the history of his region—a history that stretches back before the Roman Empire. He is also very appreciative of the American contribution to his region’s fortunes since World War II.

One evening before supper, Giorgio recounted several stories about his childhood during the 1940s. As the Axis disintegrated, German troops destroyed as much of Italy as they could on their way north, leaving much of Italy, and Valpolicella in particular, destitute and in ruins. The American military presence at the end of the war and for several years after was a comfort and a boon to the people of Valpolicella (and a source of candy and soda to Giorgio and his friends at the playground). Under the Marshall Plan, Europe pieced itself back together, and the north of Italy built itself up industrially. In fact, industry in the northern portion of Italy gave the nation as a whole prestige as a European economic entity, perhaps not to the extent of Germany or Great Britain, but certainly enough to lead a sizable minority of northern Italians to wonder aloud if they should secede from the rest of Italy. The Lega Nord, or Northern League, is unlikely to bring about such a secession, however, as even most northern Italians are fiercely proud of Italian unity, which was so dearly brought about a century and a half ago.

But heavy industry was just one part of the recovery. Valpolicella also flourished as a prestigious wine-producing region. Its distinctive grapes and its winemaking methods, some of which date back to pre-Roman centuries when Greeks colonized the area, set the wines of Valpolicella vastly apart from other European wines in terms of style. In addition, the quality of the wine in this region matches that of wines produced anywhere in Europe. It is even more interesting that in the last two or three decades, production has exploded, and Valpolicella produces and exports wine on an industrial scale while remaining true to traditional methods of production. In short, wine is a significant component of the economic success of northern Italy.

Pair that wonderful elixir with the local cuisine, and I become reluctant to let the word out on this blog that Verona is perhaps Italy’s best kept secret. It and Valpolicella are a part of the province of Veneto, of which Venice is the capital—and the chief tourist draw. The foods of this part of Italy are quite different from the fare that we consume in Italian restaurants in America. Butter and cream are used at least as much as olive oil; rice (in the form of risotto) is nearly as common as pasta, and the only tomato sauce I ate on this recent trip was on a pizza I had. A far greater portion of the food in Italy is locally produced than of that in America, so the quality of the ingredients is superior to what I am accustomed to at home. Pasta is often made fresh and is bought and consumed within hours. The joy with which Italians are said to eat is no fable for American cinema. That much, at least, is for real.

The primary reason for this trip was the wedding of Paolo, Giorgio and Rinalda’s son. He and his bride Indira had met some years before in her homeland of the Domincan Republic, where Paolo was often sent on business as a banker. Their actual wedding took place in Santo Domingo, but this event in Valpolicella was meant to be a celebration for the family in Italy. It took place Saturday evening, less than twenty-four hours after our arrival, at a restaurant on a vineyard in San Pietro in Cariano, the town where my Fornale ancestors lived for generations. It is also, incidentally, the town in which Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie purchased a villa for over thirty million euros.

Getting to the restaurant involved driving across the fields on a long path lined with tall cypress trees, a scene perhaps fit for one of those movies. The restaurant itself was so new and modern in its features and facilities, and yet traditional in its design—stuccoed walls with a tiled roof. And everything in the place, as in most restaurants and homes in Italy, was just so darned clean. It would seem that by Italian law, bathrooms are sparkling, floors are dustless, and scratches or spots on silverware and glasses is strictly prohibited.

More than just enjoying the food, I savored every moment I could with relatives with whom I correspond fairly regularly by email and Skype, but who are even more wonderful to be with in person. They are always so patient about my halting Italian, and there were always a few people around who can speak English, so my father and my wife never felt left out. It may be possible to eat too much, but there was no way I could get enough of these beautiful people, and they made a point repeatedly to tell us how thrilled they were that we could make the trip and be with them on a day when so many relatives would be together. The honor, I kept telling them, was all ours.

The rest of the trip was just as magical. Sunday we spent the entire day with cousins in Bussolengo and Pastrengo, intermediary towns between Verona and Lake Garda, another place I don’t want too many people to know about. Two cousins of my father’s generation, Maria and Loretta, have been like doting aunts to me on many visits. Loretta’s daughters Mascia, married to Simone, and Alessia, married to Giovanni, are career women whose husbands—also career men—can seriously cook! Simone has an advantage, however, as he cooks for a living, and lunch at Loretta’s house was courtesy of him. Dinner at Alessia’s was a barbecue executed by Giovanni in his basement fireplace. Joining us were old friends Paolo and Stefania, who we hope will visit us next summer.

Starting Monday, daytime was for resting, as I was still not feeling a hundred percent, and the evenings were set aside mainly for more dinners with various relatives, all of whom were unbelievably gracious and genuinely happy to have us. On Monday, we had an outdoor dinner at the San Pietro home of Bruna and Pino. Pino makes his own wine, and his grape trellises served as another film-scene backdrop. On Wednesday evening, our cousins Gianmarco and Gloria had a cookout for us at their garden apartment in Verona.

Thursday was more of an adventure. In the late afternoon, we were picked up by my cousin Elisa and her husband Giorgio. Their plan was to take us up to the mountains, specifically, the town of Erbezzo, where Elisa’s parents, Luisa and Elio, have a weekend home. The temperature in Erbezzo is typically about fifteen degrees cooler on the Fahrenheit scale, which was fine with me. My relatives had been ribbing me all week that for my second consecutive visit (the last one was in 2007), I had brought a New Jersey heat wave with me. Temperatures were in the high nineties, not all that common in Valpolicella.

Erbezzo is where I hope to retire. At an elevation of roughly four thousand feet above sea level, it is cool in the summer, and there is snow for most of the winter. Despite the mountainous landscape, there are many farms, and cows and sheep are continually out grazing. I caution the reader against romanticized cinematic visions of yokels riding around in mule-driven wagons. This is a posh-looking, modern little town without the exorbitant prices you would expect in equivalent (assuming there are equivalent) American towns. After some Prosecco and bruscetta (yes, this is another thing the movies depict accurately) with Luisa and Elio, we headed to Ristorante La Stua for my favorite local specialty, gnocchi sbatui. Bruno Fantoni is the proprietor, and his place is a family operation. A good friend of Elisa and Giorgio, he came out several times to chat with us, and he sent me home with a bottle of excellent grappa—on the house.

The one evening not devoted to dinner with relatives was Tuesday. On that night, Mayor Giorgio had gotten us tickets to see La Traviata at the Arena di Verona. The Arena is about as old and roughly half the size of the famous Colosseum in Rome, only it is mostly intact and still in regular use. Much of its outer ring was quarried over the centuries and has found its way into several buildings inside the old walled city, but apart from that, it looks much as it might have during Roman times. The Arena is impressive to behold during the day, but it is hauntingly beautiful at night, particularly on the inside when the stage is set for an opera. While opera companies across the globe are known to struggle to fill seats and pay for productions, the Veronese are very proud of the productions at the Arena. Virtually every show is sold out during each season, and this in a venue with more than eighteen thousand seats.

Departing on that Friday was very difficult. I had never had so short a visit to these relatives, and my work schedule only afforded me that one week. We endured a mild scolding from Rinalda and Giorgio for not having set aside more time, and we offered to make it up by extending our own invitation to them, which we hope they will accept. We are eager to repay their hospitality—not as one repays a debt, however. These are people who shared Valpolicella with us and made me see it as a sort of homeland. It will be our honor to make our home theirs as well.

From:

http://open.salon.com/blog/pfornale/2011/09/30/valpolicella_the_italy_i_dont_want_people_to_know_about

Villa Giona in Valpolicella

2012-05-25T01:42:00.001+01:00

Situated in a green oasis, ten minutes from the center of Verona and Lake Garda, is one of the most prestigious, historical mansions of the Valpolicella: Villa Giona.

Surrounded by a romantic park and a “vineyard garden”, the six rooms of the 16th century villa, offer you comfort and tranquility, enabling you to discover, in an original and exclusive way, a sense of relaxation and pleasure.
Throughout the day, the idea of hospitality permeates the atmosphere: breakfast is served in the “Loggia”, while in the medieval tower, where the wine exhibition is located, it is possible to appreciate Allegrini wines and the savoury products of the Valpolicella area.
Villa Giona wants to be just that: a great residence, with the desire for culture, art, noble country landscape and centuries of experience in the eno-gastronomical field: the universal desire for Bonum vivre.
The villa offers a full immersion cooking course taught by famous Italian chefs who want you to experience first hand the joys of working with high quality Italian ingredients and wines. If you are a Valpolicella and Amarone lover like us you will feel you died and went to heaven in this special place. The experience will make you feel like you are part of a noble court.

http://www.villagiona.it/

La Dolce Vita: Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie buy a spectacular $40 million Italian estate

2012-05-25T00:05:00.002+01:00

They own a luxurious Los Angeles mansion and a $3.5 million French-style home in New Orleans.
And now Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have spent $40 million on their third home - a mansion in Italy.
Situated in the Northern Italian hills of Valpolicella, the property boasts 18,000 square feet and 15 bedrooms, seven baths, a movie theater, two swimming pools, a gym and several Jacuzzis.
The property also has stables and a vineyard.

Angelina apparently fell in love with Italy after filming The Tourist there earlier this year.
She and Brad intend to use the Italian property as a vacation home and continue to use their Loz Feliz house as their main base.
The Los Feliz house is nothing to sneeze at, either.
Brad bought the 5,338 sq ft house for $1.7 million in 1994, and has invested millions into renovating and expanding it.

Sitting on nearly an acre of land, the property consists of a five-bedroom, 5,338-square-foot main Craftsman-style house.

There is also an adjoining 2,454-square-foot house on a 0.29-acre lot, plus another 0.03-acre strip of vacant land that he also continues to own, plus another adjoining 1,653-square-foot house.

Their property in New Orleans is also stunning.

Brad and Angelina bought the early-1830s mansion which is situated in the French Quarter of New Orleans in 2007.

Brad was in New Orleans at the time filming The Curious Case of Benjamin Button.

The house was purchased for $3.5 million in cash, and boasts a grand spiral staircase, elevator, and gourmet kitchen.

It also has a large private courtyad and a separate two-story guest house, as well as private parking for two cars.

www.valpolicellahomes.com

Cantine Aperte

2012-05-24T12:49:00.001+01:00

"Cantine Aperte" (Open Cellars) is 20 years old. The event organized by the Wine Tourism Movement is the most important event in Italy dedicated to lovers and connoisseurs who want to learn about wine through its places of production and its people. On the last Sunday of May, about 1,000 member companies open their doors to a million wine tourists interested indirect experience in the cellar. An event that, due to its growing success, drives every year more and more visitors discover the wineries in all seasons.

Discover the Veneto's wineries participating in the event 2012:

http://www.movimentoturismovino.it/DB_files/pdf_regioni_cantine_aperte/guida_cantineaperte_veneto.pdf

Veneto & tastes with the stars

2012-05-24T12:37:00.003+01:00

Celebrate with us another season for Veneto & Flavors: Tuesday, June 12 from 20:30 the team of Veneto & Tastes and Radio Padova together with the great stars of the North East enogastronomy are waiting in the courtyard of the Antica Trattoria Ballotta Torreglia: it is staged "Veneto & Tastes...with the Stars"
The second edition of the event with all the best chefs, vintners, gourmet, and producers of many good things that characterize the extraordinary culinary excellence of our territory.

A show dedicated at the Quality in which food, wine and "feel good" will be the bigplayers, and of course with all the radio listeners of Radio Padova, the gourmets and gourmands...all curious to taste the ultimate expression our culinary territory.

"Veneto & Tastes...with the Stars" this year with the feast of culinary excellence in the Northeast, a must for a fabulous evening wine tasting and exclusive recipes in a casual and funny context.

But "Veneto & Tastes...with Stars" will be something more than a "simple" evening event dedicated to the excellence of Veneto's enogastronomy, in fact the proceeds of the evening will be entirely donated to a nonprofit "Rare Diseases Association Baschirotto" of Vicenza. All chefs, producers, sommeliers, waiters, the entire staff of the Antica Trattoria Ballotta and the Radio Padova will do their works absolutely free.

We are waiting for June 12 "Antica Trattoria Ballotta" in Torreglia for the second edition of "Veneto & Tastes...with the Stars", impossible to miss!

the Arena, a Roman Amphitheater in Verona

2012-05-23T16:51:00.001+01:00

The splendid country...

2012-05-23T14:19:00.002+01:00

Tommasi Family winemaker

2012-05-23T13:01:00.004+01:00

Ripasso the Blues 2011

2012-05-23T12:46:00.001+01:00

Villa Serego Alighieri

2012-05-23T11:04:00.001+01:00

Dante Alighieri spent several years of his exile in Verona. His son Peter was enthralledby the beauty of the city and its magnificent countryside very reminiscent of Tuscany. He decided to stay and buy the land in Casal dei Ronchi Gargagnago in 1353, in the heart of historic Valpolicella.
The house and grounds, after 21 generations, are still owned by Count Serego Alighieri, direct descendants of the poet.
Today the villa is immersed in the vineyards of Valpolicella, it coexists with the traditional character of a large wine farm with a lodge for the reception of guests.

Some pictures about the beauty of the Valpolicella region

2012-05-23T01:03:00.001+01:00

Vin Santo (Holy wine) di Brognoligo

2012-05-22T15:01:00.002+01:00

You never stop learning. I didn't know this product that surprised me: Vin Santo di Brognoligo (in Val d'Alpone, east of Verona).

It is produced in small quantities by farmers only for personal use from Garganega grapes. After drying for about 4 months, it is vinified in oxidation fermentation in cask and then aged for 7 years in barrel "scolma" sealed with cement.

The result, complex, rich, dense, is particularly interesting.

It is produced for 300 years and this year it is celebrating for the sixtieth time the feast of cherries and vin santo (holy wine) between late May and early June.

You can find it called Durlo Court (Cà rugate company) and it is very precious. Available in 2004. It matches with cheeses...I'm sure with success.

What is Valpolicella region?

2012-05-20T21:55:00.000+01:00

The Valpolicella region and the Natural Park of Monti Lessini are comparable to Tuscany, but being not as famous yet, it is still much cheaper.

The Valpolicella region is one of the most prestigious winemaking areas in the the province of Verona, Italy, east of Lake Gard and it is usually known for the famous Red Valpolicella.

The hilly agricultural and marble-quarrying region of small holdings north of the Adige is famous for wine production. Valpolicella ranks just after Chianti in total ItalianDenominazione di Origine Controllata (DOC) wine production. The red wine known as Valpolicella is typically made from three grape varietals: Corvina Veronese, Rondinella, and Molinara. A variety of wine styles are produced in the area, including a Recioto dessert wine and Amarone, a strong wine made from dried grapes.

Most basic Valpolicellas are light, fragrant table wines in flavor. These wines can be produced in a nouveau style, similar to Beaujolais nouveau and released only a few weeks afterharvest. Valpolicella Classico is made from grapes grown in the original Valpolicella production zone. Valpolicella Superiore isaged at least one year and has an alcohol content of at least 12 percent. Valpolicella Ripasso is a form of Valpolicella Superiore made with partially dried grape skins that have been left over from fermentation of Amarone or Recioto.

Winemaking in the region has existed since at least the time of the ancient Greeks. The name "Valpolicella" appeared in charters of the mid 12th century, combining two valleys previously thought of independently. Its etymology is unknown; it might derive from a Latin and Greek mixture for "Valley of Cellars."

Today Valpolicella's economy is heavily based on wine production. The region, colloquially called the "pearl of Verona", has also been a preferred location for rural vacation villas. Seven comuni compose Valpolicella: Pescantina, San Pietro in Cariano, Negrar, Marano di Valpolicella, Fumane, Sant’Ambrogio di Valpolicella andSant’Anna d’Alfaedo.

The Valpolicella production zone was enlarged to include regions of the surrounding plains when Valpolicella achieved DOC status in 1968. In December 2009, the production of Amarone and Recioto dessert wines within the Valpolicella DOC received their own separate Denominazione di Origine Controllata e Garantita (DOCG) status.

Some pictures about Valpolicella region..

2012-05-20T21:23:00.003+01:00