Day 25 - Dianella History; Lunch with Locals; Cooking Class

Between a scenic breakfast, lunch with the locals, walks in the vineyards and an afternoon cooking class followed by an al fresco dinner, I think I may have filled up my camera's memory card with picturesque photos today.

My first order of business was to dive into the history of the villa and the Dianella name.  The current owners, the Billeri family, bought the villa in the 1950s and have owned and operated the villa, vineyards and groves, ever since.  They said Dianella is not a common name in Italy.  In fact, they said I am the first person they have met with the last name Dianella.  They were surprised and excited when I made my reservation.  Dianella is actually a quaint village - more of a single street - just outside of Vinci that consists of a few modest houses, the church of Saint Michaelis de Aliana, and the villa, so it’s really small. 

The Billeri family currently owns and operates the estate. The family lives in Florence but stays in the villa on occasion and uses it for holidays and family get togethers.

The villa’s history is quite simple.  It was created by the powerful Italian Medici family in the late 1500s as their country house for hunting.  The Medici family - the most powerful family in Florence from the 15th to the 18th century - ruled Florence and used this villa as an escape from the city (it’s a 30-minute trip from Florence).

The Medici family created Villa Dianella as a hunting villa for the family in the late 16th century.

The name Dianella comes from the Roman goddess Diana, who is the goddess of hunting and is associated with wild animals and woodland.  The “ella” is an Italian term or suffix added to words and names to show endearment.  The best comparison is like in Spanish when they add “ito” or “cito” to a word to indicate affection for that person or thing, such as papito (dearest dad) or perrito (little dog).  In English the closest thing we have would be like adding a “y” to a name like Matty or Mikey.

So Dianella – or “Diana” and “ella” – is what the Medici family named their hunting villa.  Since it was a family hunting house they named it after Diana, the Roman goddess of hunting, and added “ella” because it was a smaller house compared to their palace in Florence.  Plus it was a family home which represented love and warmth.  And that’s how Dianella came to be and how the villa got its name.  

By the way, literally translated Dianella means “Little cute female hunting goddess.”  So moving forward please refer to me as Matthew Logan Little Cute Female Hunting Goddess.

Enough with the history lesson, now onto the gorgeous sites and feasts.  First, I woke up and headed to breakfast on the patio overlooking the vineyards.  I was all by myself because the other guests weren't due to arrive until the afternoon.  The setting was straight out of a Travel Channel show.  It almost seemed too perfect.  I didn't sit down for a few minutes because I just wanted to take it in.

I thought I was on a movie set and the view was actually just a painted backdrop that they were going to wheel away once I finished eating.

 

Salami, cheese, orange juice and a view.

 Jam!

 A shot looking back toward the villa.

 I sat there for at least an hour just relaxing and taking it in...I also ate everything they put out...cheese, salami, croissants, cake, cereal, and some sort of fruit.

After breakfast I headed upstairs to wash up and then I was off to explore the vineyards and walk the hillsides.  However, before I could get too far I ran into Giuseppe, the field and farm manager.  Again, being from the south of Italy where 'warm and welcome' is the motto, he invited me in to have lunch with his family.  I jumped at the chance.  Not only is this so Anthony Bourdain to have lunch with locals, but this could be my chance to meet the nice sweet (and hot) farmer's daughter (I don't even know if he has a daughter).  As you can imagine lunch was delicious.  Pasta, chicken legs, and a delicious mozzarella salad type thing, followed by an espresso.  The only down side was instead of Giuseppe's daughter joining us for lunch his old chum Luigi was there.
 

I was headed to explore the Dianella vineyards before being intercepted by Giuseppe for lunch.

Black and white pics can even make a hat rack look interesting and dramatic.

Giuseppe (not in the picture), his wife Luciana and their daugher (she's 12) live in a quaint home just next to the villa.

Not quite what I had in mind when I wanted to meet the farmer's daughter, but Luigi made a mean espresso.

 

My 2012 Christmas card.

With a full belly I thought it was time to  go explore the vineyards, however, Giuseppe had other plans.  Now that he fed me I needed to repay him with a little labor in the fields.  Fortunately, I didn't have to do any actual work; he just wanted to show me how the grapes are picked, which I was more than willing to come check out. 

Picking grapes by hand is so old school.

Nowadays they use a fancy tractor appropriately named Grape Harvest Tractor. The thing works miracles. It literally makes picking grapes a relatively simple process.  

The cockpit of the tractor is on the left and there's a "car wash" type thing that the vines go through that strips the vines of the grapes on the right.

Before the vines go through the machine...

After going through the machine. You couldn't pick them better by hand.

Once the machine baskets are full the grapes are unloaded into a separate tractor and taken to the cleaning and processing area.

After I paid my dues in the field I was finally able to go walk the hills.  I walked around for a couple hours exploring vineyards outside of the Dianella estate.  It is prime harvest season so all the vineyards had their tractors out picking the season's bounty. 

No matter where I walked I had 360 degree views of vineyards and groves.

 

At the top of the hill in the middle of those trees was an abandoned farm building that provided spectaular views of the entire valley.

Sitting on top of the abandoned farm building enjoying the views.

 Walking the vineyards. The dirt areas between the vines were completely weed free because the farmers don't want the weeds growing and taking the water from the vines.

I came across a small plaque or memorial in one of the fields.

After I worked up an appetite and a sweat walking the hillsides, I headed back to the villa to get ready for the cooking class.  Three of the other villa guests and I were meeting with the villa's chef and a special guest for an afternoon of making pasta, tiramisu, beef fillet and delicious vegetables.

The villa's kitchen had modern appliances, but maintained its Tuscan and rustic feel.

Fresh vegetables from the villa's garden.

 Fresh basil, garlic and a bit of red vino...the beginnings to any good Italian feast.

The kitchen overlooked the grass yard and trees.

The kitchen's location made it easy to walk outside to the gardens to pick the fresh vegetables.

The cooking crew included Jean from Australia (back left) and Andres and Oxana from the Ukraine.

Special guest Luna joined us for the cooking class as well.

We used the Dianella chianti to cook the beef fillet.

Beef fillet, chopped carrots, onions and celery all cooking in chianti and water.

Manning the pans! The pot with the orange mixture that I'm stirring is a traditional Tuscan dish called pappa al pomodoro, which is a tasty tomato bread soup.

I don't think my apron was flattering to my figure...I had a bit of a French maid look going on.

The Dianella Chianti Riserva was saved for drinking.

We went through a couple bottles of wine during the three-hour cooking class. Laura, on the far right, is not only the villa chef, but she helps with the overall villa reservations and event planning as well.

 

Making pasta....this was the first time I'd ever made fresh pasta.

Dinner al fresco.

First course was the pappa al pomodoro followed by the fresh pasta with pesto sauce.

 

The final dish - sliced beef fillet topped with celery, carrots, and onions with a side of green beans and potatoes. After dinner we enjoyed the tiramisu but I was too busy eating to take a picture.

An amazing day from beginning to end.  I truly couldn't have planned it better if I tried.  Breakfast on the villa patio, lunch with Giuseppi and his family, the vineyards, and the cooking class, it was all so Tuscan, so Italian.

On Tuesday I'm planning a day trip to Florence to see some art work and explore what many consider the birthplace of the Renaissance era.