Italy has many Monasteries established amidst sensational landscapes that harbor centuries of petition, silence as well as reflection.
But there is likewise something else that defines these sanctuaries: the industriousness of the people that live there, monks and religious women that work the land to create real items.
It is therefore feasible to formulate a very initial itinerary of the monasteries of Italy, in a pursuit for penalty and genuine foods, healthy herbs, medicinal as well as aesthetic items, which have usually received prizes from prize-winning magazines like Gambero Rosso.
Starting from the north eastern near the Austrian border, we have the Benedictine Monastery of Muri Gries, in Bolzano. Since 1788 the canons have run a vineyard in the storages of the abbey where a wooden press dating back to 1549 is maintained. Lagrein Riserva is created right here, the best Italian red wine according to the Association of Sommeliers. A collection of old nativity scenes is likewise held inside the Romanesque tower of the monastery in addition to an exhibition of the present artistic production of nativity scenes in Alto Adige.
Exceptional white wines are likewise generated in Bressanone, not far from Bolzano, at the Abbey of Novacella, in whose cellars samplings are held of superb Flecks, smoked sausages, cheeses and regional bread. Likewise worth going to are the Abbey’s historic gardens where 75 various species of herbaceous plants prosper, from the much better recognized ranges, such as St. John’s Wort, Motherwort or Trigonella, to the much more exotic ones like lemon grass, melon-scented sage, Jamaican thyme or perhaps Cigarette. Relocating south, towards Verona, we visit at Monte S. Giorgio, the headland that dominates the stretch of the eastern coastline of Lake Garda in the territory of Bardolino, in between Lazise and Garda. Below we locate the Hermitage of Bardolino which provides an unparalleled panorama and a small shop offering the Camaldolese monks’ very valued DOP Extra-Virgin Olive Oil, created by the centuries-old olive trees that border the Hermitage, along with an abundant selection of items from other abbeys: various high qualities of maintains as well as honeys, chocolates, natural teas and vital oils.
Not far from below, in Praglia, in the province of Padua, is the Abbey of Santa Maria Assunta, an impressive monolith of art, with its 4 cloister layout that pleasingly incorporates Late Gothic and Early Renaissance building styles. They make red wine here as well in addition to scrumptious honey desserts and cosmetics, and also it is also feasible to expand one’s winemaking culture thanks to a project called “La Cantina didattica” [The Educational Storage], which uses training and expertise programs, events and social celebrations that intend to transfer knowledge about the connections in between national and also global vine selections, viewpoints and also strategies of cultivation and manufacturing, area advertisement wine top quality. Relocating west to the coastline of Liguria, the district of Savona hosts 2 abbeys: in San Remo, the city of blossoms, renowned for the “Festival Internazionale della Canzone italiana” [International Italian Tune Event], is the Abbey of the Carmelitane Scalze [Barefoot Carmelites],
one of the most effective instances of contemporary sacred style, understood by the popular engineer Giò Ponti in 1958, where protects of selection fruits are produced, including Grape Jam with Rum, Dog Rose, Persimmon and Chilli Pepper. On capitals over the city is the Carmelite Monastery of Monte Carmelo, where it is possible to provide complete rein to one’s wish to shop: from beer produced by monks, to grappa, to all types of digestive Amari and liqueurs, to specialties that consist of blueberries in Brachetto wine and Rosolio with wild oranges.
There are several monasteries in Central Italy. In Tuscany, along the Apennines that separate the area from Emilia Romagna, immersed in a forest of conifers, chestnuts, larches and also limes, are the Sacred Hermitage and the Abbey of Camaldoli, with its ancient Drug store and also vast production of liqueurs consisting of the well-known Laurus 48, as well as herb-based digestives as well as Amari.
There are likewise many organic teas and natural remedies consisting of Abetol, Olio alle 31 erbe [31 Herb Oil], as well as Balsamo [Balm] of Camaldoli. Walnut Liqueur (the famous Nocino) and also charm lotions are the specialties of the Cistercian Abbey in Valserena, in the district of Pisa.
Crossing the border in between Tuscany and Umbria, we come to the town of Gubbio, famous for its truffles as well as ceramics, which has shuts tie with the story of St. Francis of Assisi: this was where the saint underwent his conversion, along with the area of the Abbey of Camporeggiano, renowned for the manufacturing of biscuits.
Better southern, where Tuscany and also Umbria combine with Lazio, the Cistercian Abbey of Vitorchiano, in the province of Viterbo, is established in the middle of a sloping landscape, loaded with woods and remarkable wild fruits and also flowers, crisscrossed by streams that still run clear. Right here, given that the 1970s, Trappist nuns have devoted themselves to the craftsmen manufacturing of jams in 25 top-notch tastes.
Additionally south, 20 kilometers from Rome, along the Appia Antica (the road that, in Roman times, linked Rome to Brindisi, in the southeast of Italy) there is the Cistercian Monastery of Frattocchie, well-known for the production of digestive liqueurs and, in particular, Eucalittino, gotten from the maceration of eucalyptus leaves.
In the heart of Rome, in a little valley located along the ancient Via Laurentina, there is the Abbey of the 3 Fountains, among one of the most crucial areas in Christianity, where the apostle, Paul, was beheaded on 29th June 67 ADVERTISEMENT. This is the dreamland for anyone looking for a corner of peace and also beauty, where it is feasible to temporarily escape from the stress of the Eternal City. The Abbey’s shop markets chocolate cream as well as many various other delicacies produced by other abbeys.
The convents in Erice, a breathtaking middle ages community near Trapani, in western Sicily, were folded in 1964, however the nuns’ centuries-old recipes are still complied with religiously and also their confectionery has currently been occupied by the town’s workshops: the “bocconcini di mandorla”, “amaretti” and “bauletti”, cold and enhanced with citron save, all originated in the convent. Additionally in Sicily, however additionally south, in Agrigento, the Cistercian religious women of the Monastero di Santo Spirito still prepare “amaretti” as well as sweet couscous.