Celebration Wine Tours for larger groups. Join Gusto Wine Tours in Umbria, Italy for an amazing tailor-made Wine Tour for any celebratory occasion.
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A Brief History of Sagrantino. The story goes that it was first mentioned by Pliny the Elder in Roman times when he wrote about a grape called Itriola growing in Mevania. However, as Mevania is now called Bevagna and is in the Sagrantino production zone, this is probably scholarly wishful thinking. In the 1500s it was established that Itriola is closer to the Passerina grape. There were also theories that it was brought over from the Middle East but new thinking believes it is in fact a local grape. Sagrantino doesn’t share its DNA with any other grape variety. This...
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Fancy a Winter Warmer Tour with Gusto? We are fast approaching the end of 2018! Now we’re looking forward to those crisp, azure-skied winter days in Umbria. The vine leaves are starting to change colour from their vibrant green to the stunning hues of reds and yellows, a truly beautiful sight and a mecca for photographers the world over. Wine lovers are discovering that Umbria is a fabulous winter destination, with the robust Sagrantino di Montefalco warming the cockles of their hearts! But there isn’t just an abundance of full-bodied, elegant reds, the white wine scene in Umbria is undergoing a...
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‘Rock Star’ Wine Makers! Umbria seems to have more than it’s fair share of Rock Star wine-makers! Young, enthusiastic and innovative guys! We’d like you to meet Roberto Dionigi from Cantina Dionigi near Bevagna, Umbria. The family Dionigi have been in the wine & olive oil making business since 1896. The care, passion and attention to detail have carried on through the generations. Cantina Dionigi was one of the very first wineries we visited when we moved to Umbria and years later, we continue to love our many visits there! There’s something about the combination of the soil, the...
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This year’s Enologica Montefalco celebrates 25 years of the DOCG Sagrantino This year’s Enologica Montefalco is from Friday 15th September to Sunday 17th September when Montefalco once again opens its doors for a weekend of bacchanalian fun! Umbria Domani – (In Italian) Shows the partaking wineries. (I put this link here as a result of unknown motives, the official site for Enologica Montefalco hasn’t been updated from last year yet!) The highlight of the weekend comes after lunch on the Sunday with the Festa della Vendemmia (Grape Harvest Festival). We love this afternoon of fun most of all! The summer of...
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Gusto Wine Tours presents Special Offers for 2017 2017 Special Offers! This will be our 7th year of having the best time showing off the wonderful wines, tasty produce and introducing you to the delightful and friendly local artisans! To celebrate and to show how much we appreciate your support, we have a superb offer for you! For our previous guests This is a shout out to ALL our marvellous wine-loving guests who have come out with us over the years – you know who you are! Book a tour with us before 31st May 2017 for any time this...
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The Vendemmia is upon us!! We are very fortunate to live right smack bang in the middle of the Sagrantino area in and around Montefalco. Wine-lovers who take a Gusto Wine Tour at this time of year (September/October) are often lucky enough to see part of the vendemmia (grape harvest). Sometimes, they might even be able to pick a bunch of grapes or two! When do you get to see Sagrantino being harvested? The Sagrantino grape is one of the last of the grapes to be harvested, usually around the middle of October. The bunches are carefully picked by hand, and brought...
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TONIGHT ON TWITTER AT 9PM ITALIAN TIME! On Twitter tonight: We are guests of Tina Moray of Protocol Wine Studio (@ProtocolWine & @winescop) (use #winestudio to join in the Q & As). Along with Angelo Fongoli, award-winning wine-maker of Cantina Fongoli (@CFongoli). And Amy Ezrin, Senior VP of Massanois Imports (@massanois) who imports Fongoli wines in the States. Of course, we, Mark and Giselle from Gusto Wine Tours (@gustowinetours). We will be talking about our beloved Umbria and how we started our business here in Montefalco! We will be tasting the Fongoli Sagrantino 2010 and pairing with aged parmesan and...
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Balloon Ride Adventure for Gusto Wine Tours! Highly recommended for an unforgettable experience! We had an unforgettable morning on a hot air balloon ride over the spectacular Umbrian countryside! Getting up and out by 6am was on the sleepy side, but the dawn light was beautiful and the sunrise gave promise for a gorgeous day! We arrived at Cantina Dionigi and immediately, Peter Kollar, the owner of Balloon Adventures Italy SRL and our wonderful pilot and host for the morning took control, guiding us to a parking spot, showing us where to sign up, introducing us to everyone who had...
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Originally Posted by Gusto Wine Tours on May 22, 2011 We originally thought when we first started Gusto Wine Tours that this would be the busiest day of the year – Cantine Aperte (Open Wineries). We were also under the impression that only Umbria did this open day. We were wrong on both counts. The world and his wife descend on the cantine on this day making it nigh on impossible to contemplate organising an intimate personal wine tour! We now know, of course, that this special day is for every region of Italy – a chance for the public...
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