Cellar Tours Blog

The Prosecco wine region in northeastern Italy is one of our favorite destinations and we are delighted to share with you some of our top picks from the region if you will be travelling to Prosecco:

Appellation(s)- The main appellation is DOC Prosecco di Conegliano-Valdobbiadene. Other ones in the Treviso-Conegliano-Valdobbiadene geographic triangle include: Prosecco DOC del Montello e dei Colli Asolani, Prosecco IGT dei Colli Trevigiana,  Prosecco IGT della Marca Trevigiana and Prosecco IGT del Veneto.

What to drink- Look out for “Prosecco Superiore di Cartizze” on the label. Top producers include Bisol, Zardetto, Villa Sandi, Carpenè Malvotti, Canevel, Ruggeri & C, Adami and Cantina Produttori di Valdobbiadene.

Wineries to Visit: The Prosecco consorzio have a lot of information on wineries that you can visit, contact them for info on self-drive trips.

Here are a few of our favorites-

Villa Sandi- one of the most architecturally appealing wineries in the entire area, Villa Sandi can offer tours for the general public by previous appointment (paying). More information on this beautiful estate here.

Bisol- Apart from the outstanding visits they do (by previous appointment and paying), Bisol also have a tiny inn located in a converted monastery should you like to stay over on their gorgeous property. More information on Bisol here.

Where to Stay:

Villa Cipriani in lovely Asolo is one of our favorite hotels in the area, luxurious and very quaint with stunning views.

Follina is home to two very elegant historic hotels, the Villa Abbazia (classic charm) and the Hotel dei Chiostri (more contemporary interiors).

Where to Dine:

Villa Sandi have a terrific restaurant close to the wine estate called the Locanda Sandi.

Trattoria alla Cima is one of our favorite little restaurants in the area, located in pretty Valdobbiadene

Try you hand at cooking at home with Prosecco, check out these recipes.

Luxury Private Wine Tours:

Cellar Tours offer private VIP tours for couples and groups by Mercedes sedan and vans to top cellars with special lunches and wine pairings included. More info on day trips from Venice here.

Special Events in the Prosecco Region:

21February – 8 March 2009- In Vidor, they hold a spring “Mostra” (showcasing) of Prosecco wines from the DOC. Info here.

21March – 13 April 2009- In Col San Martino, another spring wine festival takes place, information here.

11– 26 April 2009- this year the“Prosecco Brotherhood” will hold the 39th Cartizze and Valdobbiadene DOC Wine Festival. Info here.

24 April – 3 May 2009- the wine hamlet of Saccol, near San Pietro hosts the ultra high quality Cartizze and Valdobbiadene DOC Wine Show. Info here.

30 May – 14 June 2009-S. Pietro di Feletto ( a medieval hamlet with an ancient Camaldolesi monastery) is the host to the  Vini di Collina wine fair, info here.

26-28 September 2009- In Conegliano they hold an annual grape harvest festival (“Festa dell Uva) Info here.

More events in Prosecco here.

Spain is a fantastic place to celebrate New year´s Eve, with its bustling cities like Madrid and Barcelona offering exciting fiestas and celebrations for “nochevieja” (“old night”). Here are a few of the most popular traditions:

“Las Uvas”

The most popular New Year´s Eve tradition is “las doce uvas de la buena suerte“ (the 12 grapes of good luck).  At 12 seconds to midnight the countdown begins and each time the bell rings in a new second, millions of Spaniards (sitting at home, at parties and in the streets watching the celebrations) have to eat a grape, for a total of twelve grapes.  The origin of this funny tradition supposed to bring good luck, apparently comes from some enterprising farmers with a surplus of grapes a century ago, so it is is not a tradition dating back to medieval times. It is however a tradition that EVERYONE in Spain celebrates. Enterprising Chinese street merchants even sell pre-bagged grapes in the plazas of all major Spanish cities on New Year´s Eve, to bemused tourists.  At the stroke of midnight the cork on the Cava bottle is popped, and people tell each other “Feliz año nuevo” and kiss each other on both cheeks.

“Bragas Rojas”

In Spain, as in Italy, the tradition is to wear red underwear and lingerie on New Year´s eve….what more can we say?

“El Brindis”

The toast of bubbly at midnight is made with Spanish Cava, most of which (and the best of which) is made in the wine region of Penedès south of Barcelona. Made by traditional method in the same way as champagne (with second fermentation in bottle), there are some fabulous examples of Cava. Our favorite is definitely Agustí Torelló´s stylish “Kripta” cava, which comes in an amphora shaped bottle. Other excellent producers include Parés Baltà, Albet i Noya, Gramona and Raventós i Blanc.

Wherever this nochevieja finds you in the world, we wish you a very, very happy new year and todo lo mejor for 2009!