MAPPING TUSCANY

Southern Tuscany is home to a handful of wineries, which are often described as wine cathedrals.  The Petra vineyard near Suvereto (by architect Mario Botta) is an interesting example of this new approach in winery architecture. At Petra the world-class architect went beyond designing an impressive wine cellar, but also included the outlay of the vineyards in his aim to form a contemporary agricultural landscape.  Main building of the Petra Winery in Suvereto If it is true that the way to good wine starts in the he vineyard, it is also true that only the quality of the cork,  the design of the label,  and the beauty of the bottle shape will bring the consumer's experience to full circle.  Taking this thought further it's obvious that the birthplace of a good or even fantastic wine, is yes the vine and its grapes, but also the winery building in particular and the whole estate in general.  If you know any of Botta's works,  you'll recog...

Let's be honest. I never liked San Vincenzo. Okay, it has a long and sandy beach, but if you're looking for ugly town planning along the Tuscan coast - you've found a good example. It's a shame that places like Follonica, Marina di Grosseto or San Vincenzo have grown too fast and without any aesthetic standards during the second half of the last century. Luckily these towns managed to keep their lovely beaches, but what else do they have in store? Il Bucaniere: foodie and pirate meeting point on San Vincenzo beach  In the case of San Vincenzo the reason I keep visiting is a restaurant. Or actually, two. Two restaurants linked to one family. When I moved to Tuscany in the late 90s I often heard the name Gambero Rosso, when asking for the region's (if not Italy's) best seafood restaurant. The restaurant in San Vincenzo's town center used to sport two Michelin stars and even though my olive picker wage didn't allow for it, I was lucky enou...

In the summer of 2084 my son will turn 80 and my daughter 78. Quite probably they will still own the Tuscan olive grove that has been in the family for centuries. A lot will have changed by then - but not  the beautiful olive trees in that grove . On my son’s birthday in August the family will gather and after a Tuscan lunch far too heavy for such a hot day, one of my great-granddaughters will quickly skip through the countless family photos on a worn-out digital storage device. Quickly until she gets to the pictures of the winter 2012. “Grandpa, what’s this?” Igloo building in Tuscany