Tuscany: Pienza, San Quirico d'Orcia, Castiglione d'Orcia, Bagno Vignoni, Montichiello

We really made good use of our location in southern Tuscany during the second week, visiting all of the above towns, sometimes more than once.  On most of those trips, it was just Amanda and I heading out, as Michael was catching up on work and Jovie and Lola would play around the garden and pool.  But at the end of our trip, we all went to the bigger towns of Montepulciano and Montalcino.

When we first got to southern Tuscany, one of the first towns we visited was the charming and beautiful Pienza, set high up on a hill overlooking the beautiful yellow and green fields of the Val d'Orcia.  We were so fortunate to be there on the very day that they had their famous annual cheese festival (the first Sunday of September).  Pienza is known for having some of the best pecorino cheese in Italy, which pretty much means it's known for having the best pecorino cheese in the whole world.  It was so much fun!  We had lunch in a bustling and busy restaurant, then sampled grilled sausage and pepper sandwiches on the street, followed by many different kinds of pecorino (I ended up buying a delicious one aged in fig leaves), followed by gelato.  We also managed to catch the local "parade" (really just consisting of a bunch of adults and children swirling flags and playing music while walking down the one main street) but it was colorful and fun and all new to Lola, so it was very exciting.  The townspeople also clearly took a lot of pride and had worked hard on the whole thing.  We didn't stay for the cheese rolling contest though.

Over the course of the next few days, my sister and I managed to hit up all of the other small towns that were within close driving distance.  We went to the market at San Quirico d'Orcia and went to town on fruits and veggies: peaches, grapes, figs, melon, string beans, red peppers, and (drumroll) chanterelle mushrooms!

 They also sell huge tubs of salted anchovies at the open air markets here.  If I had had enough room in my luggage...

Washing chanterelles is a challenge because of their beautiful, intricate folds.  Per advice found on the interwebs, we just sauteed them in some butter.  They tasted nutty and earthy.

 Castiglione d'Orcia was a larger town than I expected - it had a sister town, Rocca d'Orcia, which we didn't quite make.  Unlike many of the other towns, this one felt very residential and less touristy.  Here, I saw many old residents sitting on benches chatting and enjoying their day, families out shopping for groceries at the supermarket, and kids running and playing around in the streets.  It was really nice.

 

There was a historic section of the town (a huge, crumbling tower) but I'm actually kind of glad we didn't spend all of our time there.  Some of the most charming parts of visiting these little towns is getting to see how people live.  This was one of the towns that was straight west of our villa, and most distinguishable because of its tower.

 

 I almost skipped Bagno Vignoni, but I'm so glad we decided to give it a try.  It was one of the most charming and beautiful towns out of all the ones we visited.  It was a famous and busy "spa" town back in the day, when everyone and anyone who was anyone would stop in, either en route to Florence or Rome, and "take the waters" for any ailments, or if they just wanted some good old fashioned R&R.  Imagining the sparse hygiene concepts that existed then, I shudder to think of how this could have been refreshing or healthy, but it no longer matters now because the waters are so polluted that it is all stagnant and no longer swim-able.

 The views and town itself, however, are still stunning.

 

The waters flow to a little pool at the very bottom.  We didn't go down there to explore, but it was an otherworldly turquoise blue from where we were standing.

 When Amanda and I first reached the town, it was overcast and a bit drizzly. 

 

 

Bagno Vignoni: the town that decided to make their main square a swimming pool...

 But then to our great luck the sun came out and we ended up having a lovely stroll around, and stumbled into the most charming wine and deli shop.  We also did some souvenir shopping as well.

 

LOOK at those goodies!

We decided we had to try some wine and cheese and some of their antipasti.  The zucchini ended up being an absolute delight (pickled to within an inch of its life and SO tart) and we ended up taking some home.

Vinegar - the way to my heart

We joked around a little bit when it came time to the wine tasting.  Their pours are freakin' generous.


I loved pretty much everything about this shop.

That, my friends, is lardo.  Yes, a 3 inch-thick slab of pure pig fat.

 

On another night, Amanda and I went out on a sister date night, to the (yet another charming!) little town of Monticchiello.  There, we sat down to a fantastic and very reasonably priced dinner at the restaurant La Guardiola.  I kept staring at their huge fig tree during dinner, thinking about how delicious those freshly picked figs would taste.

 

We started with a tomato bread soup - a very interesting local style of soup that is very hearty.  It's practically tomato sauce, given how chunky the tomatoes are.  I can't say that it was my favorite, preferring my soups more broth like, but it was flavorful and definitely worth a try.

 Knowing that the cattle here is prized for their slow, non-hormone raising methods, we decided to try their beef tartare.  Also, hearing that Amanda had never had beef tartare before, I declared it a must-try.  It was a good decision.  The beef was served with chopped hazelnuts, atop a layer of fresh burrata, and topped with a generous sprinkling of truffles and truffle oil.  The hazelnuts livened up the beef with a nutty and vibrant texture, the truffles and black pepper added additional flavor, and the creaminess of the cheese was a very nice contrast to the pungency of the truffle.

 

Not to get too carried away with all the beef and cheese we were eating, we ordered a large salad of apples, walnuts and pecorino (well, there had to be cheese).  It was the best salad I had in Italy.  Their microgreens were so fresh and tender I wondered if they picked it from their own vegetable garden that morning.  Every leaf was perfect.

  We also had some delicious pork (cinta senese), which was cooked in a slightly spicy, savory sauce.

All in all, I was very satisfied with every one of our little forays into these tiny towns.