Monday night brought some very heavy thunderstorms to the Orvieto area, and with it, a brisk wind. We had made plans to do some wine tasting at a vineyard 6 minutes from Villa Ombrosa. When we arrived, the owner and wine maker met us and took us for a tour of his family’s winery, Madonna del Latte.
Leon, the winemaker, grew up in Germany with a German father and Italian mother. His parents bought the estate in 2000, as it was not a winery, but just an older unkept estate. When they relocated, his father was in his early 60’s and mother late 50’s (what vision Helmuth and Manuela had in restarting a new life in Italy).
They planted many types of vines right away, and they have reached maturity. Leon tends to the acreage himself, doing most vine maintenance by hand. He is the chief wine maker, marketer and host of all the winery events. He spent time in Austria, Sonoma and New Zealand learning winemaking techniques, until he settled into the estate in Orvieto.
There is a small chapel on the estate with a painting of the Virgin Mother nursing Jesus, and as a result the estate was named Madonna del Latte, which they kept as the name of the vineyard.
While creating the winery, his father had been told that there was a storage cellar under the property that the local people had been using as a dump. He began to clean it out and found that the cellar was in fact a 2400-year-old Etruscan tomb, which is completely naturally climate controlled! A perfect cellar to create wine!
The winery makes many types of wine, including Classico Orvieto, Pinot Noir and Cabernet Franc. Our tasting was held outside in their garden, which was a treat. We had cheeses (all made by a goat farmer next door – lucky me) and charcuterie. We tasted 6 wines and bought a few being sent home!
We sat alone on a beautiful patio just outside the home, under shade and among Olive trees. The sun re-appeared, and a soft breeze blew in from the fields. The view was so relaxing. There is something about the architecture and agriculture in Italy that brings peace and relaxation. The wines were very good and very enjoyable. The story of the vineyard and birth of Leon’s first child, a daughter 21 days ago, was an enjoyable conversation – something way off the touristy path. We ordered some wine to be delivered in time to celebrate with our children over Thanksgiving. A truly memorable day thanks to Mary.
Rain is forecasted for all day tomorrow, so we went into Orvieto for a dinner outside.
As we have not eaten inside since we arrived, we may have to eat at the villa tomorrow evening, before leaving Orvieto on Thursday. We had an aperitif in town then a nice quiet dinner of pasta. Mary tried a local form of pici, called umbricelli with a cream topping, which we both agreed was super!!
Cin Cin!!!!!