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HILLS
>> CHIANTI
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INTRODUCTION
The "Garden of Europe" does not need an introduction
as it is already famous in the whole world for its sweet beauty,
so famous that many people consider it the most beautiful existing
countryside. Rolling hills with olive-trees and vineyards, where
the famous wine, that since centuries has conquered delicate palates,
plotted with villages, parish churches, castles and restructured
cottages to offer the tourist a dream holiday. Then you have the
mild climate and the enchanting landscape which makes this countryside
between Florence and Siena so unique.
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 For
foreigners the Chianti region is much more than a simple place on
earth, it is a model of life quality. In the Chianti region the pace
is slow, there is no place for stress, you eat well and drink even
better, sitting down to eat for hours without hurrying, perhaps chatting
with the family members or just with some friends. A magical countryside,
full of unforgettable atmosphere which catch all your senses. The
landscape satisfy the educated eye for its sober elegance, the excellent
wine conquers even the best sommelier, the perfume of the land, which
changes from one place to another, gives a relief to noses that have
forgot the smelling of the countryside.
Since about one year Greve, the "capital" of the
Chianti region, has tried to give a name to these extraordinary characteristics,
giving itself an identity which is more efficient than any slogan.
The name of the idea is Città Slow (Slow City), which has become
an international movement leaded by the Chianti. The cities of nice
living are those where the territory and the air quality are safeguarded,
where the average life span is longer and there are no marginalization
or poverty, where the landscape is not destroyed but considered a
value. The whole Chianti region can be called "Slow" and
first the foreigners and then the Italians have realised this.
The tourists have demonstrated their love for the Chianti region
and many of them, after having spent their holidays here, have decided
to purchase a house to live. There are many adopted inhabitants, most
English and Germans, often artists, who have fallen in love with the
beautiful landscape and have bought an old cottage to make it their
dream residence.
You can not actually call it Chiantishire, as that would mean that
there are only Englishmen living here. Once it probably was true,
but today the tourists are not only Englishmen but also Dutch, German,
American and Italian.
A big part of the fascination of the Chianti region is due
to the architectonic and artistic heritage with lots of history from
the past. A history made of bloody and cruel battles between Florence
and Siena during the Middle Ages in order to acquire the leadership
of the region. It is believed that the name Chianti comes from "Clante",
the Etruscan name for a stream close to the river Arbia. In the 13th
century the region which today comprehends the municapilties of Radda,
Gaiole and Castellina was conquered by the Florentines who organised
it in a Lega del Chianti. The symbol of the municipalities in the
Chianti region was already the Gallo Nero (the Black Cook), which
is still today the logo of the Consorzio del Marchio Storico Chianti
Classico. In the 18th century it became necessary to redefine the
borders of the Chianti region, starting with the wine producing areas.
Greve and parts of the territories of San Casciano Val di Pesa, Barberino
Val d'Elsa, Tavarnelle Val di Pesa and Castelnuovo Berardenga were
added to the already existing municipalities of the Lega. Still today
these old borders delimit the area where the wine Chianti Classico
del Marchio Storico Gallo Nero is produced. The rigid regulations
allow the member producers to obtain the identification mark Denominazione
di Origine Controllata e Garantita (Denomination of Controlled and
Guaranteed Origin).
The Chianti region comprehends part of Valdelsa. So therefore
the municipality of Barberino, though its vineyards produce the Chianti
Classico Dogc Gallo Nero, is included in the section regarding Valdelsa.
The other seven municipalities of the Chianti region are located between
the provinces of Florence and Siena. But it is still possible to talk
about this region as a geographic, historic, cultural and productive
unity. The homogeneity of the region has pushed the local governments
to create a confederation, through the foundation of a Distretto Rurale
del Chianti which is under process. |
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