Landscape and Curiosity

LANDSCAPE

The farm is located in a strategic location for any kind of holiday. Located about 4 km from the motorway exit Firenze Sud on the Chianti hills overlooking the city from the south east of Florence, the farm is surrounded almost entirely by beautiful olive trees and cypresses, typical landscape of the valley of river Arno which slowly flows at the bottom of the valley. The farm is located at a height of about 350 meters above sea level and overlooks the city of Florence, being just 10 km far from its cathedral.

The area is served by municipal roads well developed, and there is no difficulty of practicability. The farm is located 1 km from Antella, where you will find shops, supermarkets, a pharmacy and many leisure facilities.

Behind the farm, where the sun rises, higher than about 200 meters, there is the ancient monastery of Montisoni which dominates the Arno and Bisenzio valleys with a view that spans from South Florence to the hills of Pistoia, and behind them the mountains: Abetone, the group of Cimone, the mountains of Garfagnana and the Apuan Alps.

The monastery of Montisoni is located at the top of an ancient Etruscan road rebuilt by the Romans that allowed the transfer from Chianti through the pass of San Donato in Collina. Today the remains of this road are very well preserved. The area on the top is full of water and catchment basins, so the vegetation is very lush and well preserved. The oasis of "Fonte Santa" offers a spectacle of nature and a green lung for the city of Florence. The monastery can be reached on foot in about 15 minutes via the local road from which you can take pictures through olive trees next to the old Tabernacle of "Madonnino."

Regarding the land and the environment in which the farm is located, you can check the company website www.oliodelcolle.com, that you can access by clicking on the link on the left menu.

As said before, the strategic location where the farm is located gives to a family (or two families) the possibility to have an holiday full of opportunities. We will discuss later about the city of Florence just because we want to emphasize all the other possibilities that people often ignore due to lack of information and time. The farm is located about 30 minutes from Greve in Chianti (30 km), 50 minutes from Siena (about 50 km), 50 minutes from Arezzo "(about 70 Km), 60 minutes from Pisa (70 km), 70 minutes from Cortona (90 Km), and just 15 minutes from the mall "The Mall" in Reggello (about 15 Km). After visiting those place, returning to the oasis of peace and tranquility of the farm is a very pleasant experience.

Florence is only 5 Km from Antella. It can be easily reached by bus 32 in 20 minutes or by car, Florence is a human-sized city, with an historical center enclosed by a circle of boulevards that can be covered on foot, so using the car can be discouraged, because of the difficulty in getting a free parking. Other parking are very expensive.

Florence is a city with a long history that can be found everywhere in town, for example in the style of public buildings, churches and residential buildings. In Florence you can admire some very valuable examples of Art Nouveau style but without any doubt the city is famous for the pre-Renaissance: this is the city of Brunelleschi and his Dome, Dante Alighieri, Machiavelli and Guicciardini, the Florence of the sixteenth century was the political center of the Grand Duchy of Tuscany and the cultural center of the world at the time. Ruled by the Medici family, Florence was the capital of Italy. Florence is the city of the Uffizi Gallery, Palazzo Vecchio, Piazza della Signoria, Ponte Vecchio, Santa Croce. You have to wonder if Florence is a city or a work of art: the historical center of Florence contains a lot of masterpieces, and it's difficult to separate the city from his works. Florence has been inserted in the list of UNESCO World Heritage Site. In this open-air museum you can read the story from the walls with frescoes by Giotto and Masaccio, you can see the city of a Grand Duke with the prodigious painter, architect and historian Giorgio Vasari, author of "Lives of the Artists", or the extensive work of the group headed by the great Donatello, and you can admire masterpieces by Michelangelo Buonarroti and the shops of Ghirlandaio and Bertoldo and of art teachers, architects, sculptors and painters such as Simone del Pollaiuolo called "Il Cronaca", Bernardo Buontalenti and Giambologna or the innovative art of the great painter Giotto and many other artists whose patronage did not fail to gives support. Last but not least you can see many forms of art of the genius Leonardo da Vinci, artist and scientist who left an indelible mark in the history of mankind.

CLIMATE

The farm is located above the valley of Florence, a city characterized by a continental climate with cold winters and with high humidity that can also be found in the warmer months of summer. The climate of the area where it is located, considering the Arno River, it is more similar to the Mediterranean climate with relatively mild winters and warm summers with average rates of humidity and good ventilation especially from the west.

TYPICAL MARKETS IN FLORENCE

San Lorenzo market: from Piazza San Lorenzo to Via dell'Ariento all around the church of S Lorenzo you will find the largest market in the city, with all kinds of souvenirs and handicraft articles.

Central Market: Inside the San Lorenzo market you will find the largest food market in the city.

Sant'Ambrogio market: from Piazza Ghiberti to Piazza Sant'Ambrogio you will find a beautiful food bazaar.

TRADITIONAL EVENTS

These are the main traditional events that takes place every year in Florence:

The Ride of the Kings (Epiphany on January 6) - each year a solemn procession in disguise, inspired by the famous fresco by Benozzo Gozzoli in the Palazzo Medici-Riccardi in the Chapel of the Magi, it wanders the streets of the center and then enters into the Florence Cathedral to offer gifts to Jesus.

The outbreak of the Cart (Easter Sunday) in Piazza Duomo - the wagon pulled by ribboned oxen from Porta a Prato reaches the square of the Duomo of Florence. At the center of the wagon is fixed the wire on which the dove will slide; while performing these preparations a solemn procession reaches the Florentine Baptistery and a religious service starts. At noon, the dove runs along the wire leaving a trail of smoke along the central nave of the cathedral, reaches the cart where the fireworks light up and then go back to the starting point. The wagon will light hundreds of multicolored smokes accompanied by whistles a loud bang.

The Festa del Grillo (Ascension Sunday) Cascine Park - festival of pagan origin celebrating the arrival of spring recalls the festivities of the city with the "May Day" when young boys adorned the doors and windows of their girlfriends and donated a cricket singing in a small cage as a sign of lucky.

The Calcio Storico (in June, with a match on June 24th) Piazza Santa Croce - the game was played in ancient Roman Florentia to prepare athletically legionaries. In 1530, during the siege of the imperial troops was played in Florence a memorable game between Whites and Greens in Piazza Santa Croce. The Calcio Storico (also called Calcio in Costume) was played in the most important squares of the city during the Carnival and special occasions. Today, the tournament is played between the four historic districts of the city. The equivalent of a goal is called "hunting" and the prize is a calf.

The Feast of St. John (June 24) - St. John the Baptist is the patron of Florence, and the city has always given him religious and civil honors. In honor of the saint the Baptistery was erected too. On the morning of June 24 a short procession from the Palazzo Vecchio goes to the Baptistery to offer huge candles adorned to their patron. In the evening from Piazzale Michelangelo starts the fireworks called "Fochi di San Giovanni".

The Rificolona (the evening of September 7) - Piazza Santissima Annunziata - The festival is dedicated especially to children and is held on the eve of the feast of the Nativity of Our Lady. The historians argue that the Rificolona was originated by peasants and mountaineers who reached Florence to sell their products at the fair on September 8, and to light their way at night they used torches and lanterns of various shapes. The Florentines began building puppets of paper with a candle, then the shape changed, and the lanterns were hung from the windows of the houses, creating an unusual and striking environment.

AGRICULTURAL EVENTS

These are the main agricultural events in our company and in our area:

January - Control of the structures of the vineyard and treate them with pesticide for the winter.

February - Olive trees and grape vines, apricots, plums, peach trees and other fruit trees are pruned. The scheduled fertilization is done.

March - Same as February.

April - Same as February and March, but the pesticide treatments begin again.

May - Harvesting of the first fruits: cherries and apricots. The grass in the fields and around the plants is cut.

June - Same as May.

July - Harvesting of plums and pears. The treatments at the vineyard continue.

August - Preparing the equipment for the harvesting; the vineyard is settled, and peaches, plums, pears, figs are harvested.

September - This is the month of the grape harvesting. Dried fruit is harvested too.

October - The fermentation of wine is cured, and from 20th October we are preparing for the olives.

November- The work on olive oil keeps going: continued pressing of olives and the tasting of extra virgin olive oil.

December - The transfer of wine is made, as well as the last frangiture and then the equipment and the crusher are put aside.

Italiano