HONEY NOT WINE! BEEKEEPERS WEEK IN MONTALCINO: SEPTEMBER 2013

With all the talk about the importance bees have for everything on this planet, it's a relieve to hear that Italy still counts 75'000 beekeepers.

Meet some of them in Montalcino this weekend in September and taste a few of the country's 51 official types of honey. Some of the most popular in Tuscany are chestnut, wildflowers and acacia (my favorite!). And no need to say it, they taste best on top of a piece of Pecorino cheese from the Val d'Orcia.

Beehives and olive groves in Tuscany

SETTIMANA DEL MIELE - BEEKEEPERS WEEKEND IN MONTALCINO
Fortezza (fortress): September 6-8, 2013
Honey tasting daily from 9 to 7pm
Visits with Montalcino's beekeepers are organized during the weekend.

Honey and beer? Worth a try! Follow up the beekeepers festival with an Italian artisan beer in Buoconvento.

SANT'ANTIMO ABBEY - TUSCANY'S ROMANESQUE TREASURE

Sant'Antimo abbey near Montalcino You don't have to be a catholic to remain spellbound by the eternal beauty of the Sant'Antimo abbey. The Tuscan church and monastery can turn a stubborn skeptic into a reborn spiritual. At least for the time of the visit.

SWIMMING, READING AND DINING IN BAGNO VIGNONI

Whilst the sell-out of tourist destination is a well known plague all through Italy, t here exists a tiny town in UNESCO Heritage Val d'Orcia which forgoes made in China souvenirs and just opened a bookshop instead. Bagno Vignoni is one of Tuscany's oldest tourist destinations. In fact the historic spa town has never been anything else than a tourist destination, and the ratio of inhabitants to visitors must always have been at least 1 to 10. Having looked after medieval pilgrims, ailing popes and saints ( St. Catherine of Siena used to live here for a while), Bagno Vignoni isn't tempted at all to put out plastic chairs or pizza takeaways for present day travelers. I used to live close to Bagno Vignoni and have fond memories of chasing my first -born around the town's main square which consists of a steaming hot water pool (a must-see sight for urban architects!). Our healthy m...

VAL D'ORCIA: A MAP OF THE UNESCO HERITAGE SITE

About 40 minutes south of Siena and a bit over an hour from the Tuscan coast, Val d'Orcia lies to the east of the Maremma and to the west of Montepulciano and Umbria. The UNESCO world heritage site is made up by the territories of Montalcino, San Quirico d'Orcia (with historic spa town Bagno Vignoni ) , Pienza, Castiglione d'Orcia and Radicofani. The Orcia river crosses two more municipalities (Castel del Piano and my hometown Cinigiano ), where it divides the province of Siena from the province of Grosseto (Tuscany's two southernmost areas) before flowing into the Ombrone river. View VAL D'ORCIA MAP in a larger map

Mapping MONTALCINO

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