An Introduction To Wine @ Hotel Du Vin, Poole

Despite the howling winds and stormy weather that blew us into Poole's Old Town last night, we were quickly warmed by the Head Sommelier of Hotel Du Vin ahead of our evenings wine tasting.

Having lived a stones through from the Langhe and Barolo wine regions, and holidayed in Chianti town, it's somewhat surprising I've never been to a proper wine tasting before. I've learned bits and pieces along the way, asking to squish grapes where I can, but nothing compares to one-on-one time with a pro and a few good bottles of vino with friends.

So as a gift this Christmas, Mark arranged a wine tasting and dinner with friends at the perfectly named Hotel Du Vin in Poole.

The Wine Tasting Room

After drying off we were invited to the tasting room and our lesson began. In front of us were 4 small glasses of wine. The glasses, we were told, were those used by professional tasters, and designed to trap the aromas of the wine in the glass. Some more high-end tasters will even supply differently shaped glasses depending on the wine being tasted to maintain perfect sipping, swilling and spitting conditions; wine after all is a £100 million industry in the UK alone.

Our first wine was Chablis. Chablis comes from a specific area in Burgundy, France and is made using the Chardonnay grape. Our sommelier asked us to smell the wine, as he introduced the flavours or apple and citrus before we sipped. During the tasting we were encouraged to chew the wine, as it's the side of the tongue which detects the acidity of the wine. It was crisp, dry and delicious.

Following was a Californian Chardonnay, which immediately was more golden in colour with scents of vanilla. It's here we were introduced to oak. The oak barrels used in wine making is what delivers the subtle differences and complexities to different wines, as the wood and degree of toasting combine with the wine inside. This chardonnay was a firm favourite with our group!

Our wines for the night

After finishing the white selection we moved on to the reds, starting with a French Pinot Noir. It was young and playful with good level of clarity, which is often a sign of its youth. Age in wine is not always a good thing; depending on the grapes used some wines are best at a younger age to get the right balance of flavours before oxidation spoils the bottle. A vintage wine, is not necessarily old, but refers to wines that have been produced from perfect conditions, and are as such hard to come by. Reserva, historically for Rioja wines, does refer to age though...

"Rioja spends less than a year in oak barrels. Rioja Reserva is aged for at least three years, of which at least one year is in oak. Finally, Rioja Gran Reserva wines have been aged at least two years in oak and three years in bottle." Wiki

New World wines are generally produced in the Southern Hemisphere, California and the emerging Asian markets. Old World wines are European. Our final wine was a new world wine from Argentina; a Malbec which Argentina produces a lot of. This wine was older and full bodied with plum notes. It had a higher dose of tannins; a natural chemical created by the natural products used to make wine (grape skins, seeds and oak). Over time this may form into natural sediment and found at the bottom of the bottle, but it's completely natural and safe to drink. Sediment does not mean that a bottle has "corked" which instead refers to wine that has been contaminated by cork taint and has a smell of mould and damp.

Great wines & great friends

Free from corked wines here, we were now at the end of our introduction to wine, with our heads full of new knowledge, questions and (I admit) a little post-wine fuzziness. We finished the evening with dinner and a bottle of Cotes Du Rhone, knowing just a little more about the fascinating world of wine!

Sail Back: Touring Tuscany

October is a wonderful time to explore the rolling countryside and deep vineyards of Tuscany. Vendemmia is in full swing as the wineries of the region harvest the grapes to make the delicious Chianti and Montepulciano wines. Mark and I explored the area in October 2012 with the use of a hire car and a single map of Tuscany.

Flying into Pisa airport we quickly located the hire car and set off with our map in hand. Our destination was the agiturismo Borgo Casa Al Vento, a working winery with a few boutique rooms and a specialist wine spa in Gaoile in Chianti.

Borgo Casa al Vento

Once off the motorway we were treated to spectacular views of the Tuscan countryside, it's rolling hills and line upon line of vines fit to bursting with flavours which have put Tuscany on the map. We had to stop as we caught sight of a stunning villa across the valley, which was illuminated by a rainbow. We were stopped in our tracks, and we later discovered the Villa Vistarenni is a favourite on postcards and calendars in the area.

Arriving at the winery, we were warmly greeted by the team and shown to our room, which was typically furnished and had a beautiful view of the tall Cypreese and the valley below. No TV and very weak internet allowed us to really switch off, enjoy the wine and the delicious food punctuated by walks among the vines and reading on the lawn.

Helping to sort the grapes

On our first night we were treated to wild boar and a dessert of red wine panna cotta which simply blew my mind and I've been searching for closer to home ever since.The best bit was seeing the winery in action and even helping to sort the grapes, picking out the bad ones before they get pressed.

The wines produced by the winery were called Aria and Gaoile and we spent our afternoons nipping to the co-op in the village to pick up essentials for lunch, then relaxing in the afternoon sunshine with a good book (I was reading Peter Mayle's A Good Year) and a bottle of wine.

Radda in Chani

A short and windy drive from Gaoile was Radda in Chianti. Perched on a hill above the vines, the town was blessed with panoramic views and cobbled streets, each bend more beautiful that the last. We enjoyed a drink in a local bar with a tiny window that hinted at the view beyond, before an alfresco dinner in a shady courtyard - quintessential Tuscany!

An evening in Radda In Chianti

On our final day, we checked out early and started a three city tour in one day to make the most of the car hire before our late flight home.

Siena

We started the day in Siena, about 15km from Gaoile in Chianti. The hilly city is dominated by its narrow streets and tall buildings which make you feel very small. We stopped by the Piazza del Campo where horses race twice a year for the Palio di Siena. There was no racing there that day, just the autumnal sunshine.

Siena

We walked the steep steps to the Duomo, which was simply stunning. This was the first Duomo I'd seen in such a style (similar to Milan and Florence); I could have looked at it all morning. We grabbed a pizza slice from a nearby vendor and munched through the hot bread and cheese before heading back to the car.

Duomo di Siena

Sam Gimignano

Our next stop was the picturesque city of Sam Gimignano; the city of towers. Though very small, San Gimignano draws a lot of crowds for its panoramic views and medieval architecture. The town was added to the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1990.

Piazza della Cisterna, Sam Gimignano

We wandered the streets and had lunch in Piazza della Cisterna whilst watching the world go by. Afterwards, we sampled the world famous gelato from Gelateria Dondoli on the steps of the Duomo before exploring the town more, winding down streets and enjoying the views. Before long we were passing back through the gates of the city and off to our final stop Pisa.

Endless Tuscan Views

Pisa

The sun was beginning to set as we pulled into a car park in Pisa, beside the walls of the Piazza del Duomo. Home the Pisa's most famous sight, the leaning tower of Pisa, the piazza was different to how I expected it to look - it was wide, flat and grassy with the Baptistry, tower and church all in close quarters. The sun was casting a beautiful glow and we indulged in taking some touristy photos with the tower before grabbing a quick dinner at the first reasonable place we could find on Via Santa Maria before getting the car back to the airport.

Mark and I at the leaning tower of Pisa

We had an amazing time exploring the Tuscan landscapes and cities, and certainly wet our appetite for discovering more of Italy's wine regions, which would eventually see us living in Barolo country.

Other blogs from the Sail Back series:

• Sail Back: Zakynthos
• Sail Back: Marmaris
• Sail Back: Bruges

Life in Italy

A very old bottle of Barolo

It's been well over a month now since we arrived in Piedmont, and moved in with a local family to help look after their two children.

Above all else this experience has given us a unique insight into Italian life, its customs and nuances.

For example, did you know that Italians eat pasta with their right hand only, and never with the help of a knife. I noticed this one dinner time and was surprised to see the family switch which hand held the fork depending on whether they were eating pasta or anything else. I've always been a backwards eater, but this was something else!

Canale, the neighbouring "city" is where we have spent many an afternoon beside the pool and chatting away. The city is tiny, I know of larger villages in England. Its the kind of place where all the shops still close for 3 hours over lunch, there is a big market every Tuesday and a week long carnival in the summer. Every time we wonder the streets we bump into one family member or another. It's mad to think that places like this still exist, when back home I rarely bump into people and lunch time is prime time for shopping.

Breakfast, where my healthy eating ends!

Those long lunches are starting to take their toll though. A typical days eating here consists of some cereal and an espresso for breakfast, pasta, protein and vegetables for lunch, and similar for dinner with added antipasto, cheese and bread. Whilst travelling I think I stayed about the same size, but I can feel the lb's creeping up on me now! What's hardest is I know this amount of food is typical here!

Corrado and the birthday present we got him

Aside from all the pasta, one weekend I got to eat a lot of cake as it was Corrado's birthday! To celebrate the family held a small party at their grandparents house. There weren't any decorations, but the whole family turned up to wish him a happy 6th birthday. Corrado received a few carefully chosen and completely appropriate presents and stuffed his face with cake and crisps. He played with his friends whilst the family chatted, and we all sang when the candles were lit.

Vespas in La Morra

Last week, the other au pair Evanne's mum came to visit. They were off to tour the Italian countryside for a week, but before they left we took them out to the Langhe. We had been to this area before but looked forward to returning at a much slower pace. Our first stop was La Morra for the unparalleled view of the stunning countryside. We grabbed lunch in a tiny courtyard which was offering amazing wine. We topped lunch off with a wonderful Moscato gelato which was every bit as sweet and refreshing as you can imagine.

Wine on tap!

One Sunday we were invited to the opening of a wine bar down the road. The place had been a bar for a while but was opening under new management after a little refurbishing. As we arrived, lots of the locals were bundled under cover from the drizzle sipping their reds and whites. As the weather cleared up the band started to play their jazzy tunes on the drums, guitar and bass. The wine flowed freely and for free and we grazed on bar snacks such as fried aubergines and omelette.

Making pizza the best way

Last weekend was also filled with parties. On Saturday night the large courtyard outside the families house was filled with tables for a very special occasion; Davide was firing up the wood oven and making pizza. Davide is a chef by trade and hoping to open his own pizzeria in Canale this year, so we expected good things.

In the early evening the neighbours and friends started arriving and the tables were pilled high with bottles of wine. We started with pizza topped with cold fresh tomato, basil and red onion then slowly moved through gorzongola and sausage, stracchino cheese and rocket, tomato and grilled vegetables and Margherita.

Feast your eyes!

Towards the end of the evening the neighbour Gianpiere was opening Barolo wines from 1970 and 1965. This was a very special treat and we were honoured that he chose to share them with us. We finished off the feast with tiny cakes a bit like petit fours. Can you believe we cooked 48 pizzas for about 20 people; some did make it into the freezer for another days lunch though!

Its only 2 more weeks now before we pack up for the last time to head home. Our social calendar is all ready filling up with family events and nights out with friends. It all still feels a world away as I sit here in small town Italy with the church bells chiming in the distance...

Settling into Santo Stefano

Standing in the town square watching the traditional dancing with the vineyard spotted hills behind me, I though I'd fallen into a Peter Mayle book. But this isn't Provence, this is Piemonte.

Santo Stefano Roero, Piedmont

Its been 2 weeks since we arrived in Santo Stefano from Milan. We are starting a brand new kind of adventure. Over is the wilderness of South East Asia and the tourist saturated Italian cities. Now we are settling in small town Italy for the summer.

And what a place to be settling in. The Alps are in sight and the Ligurian coast is just an hours drive away; the hills produce world famous wines and much of the landscape is protected by Unesco.

We are staying with a family who have generously allowed us to stay with them in exchange for some au pair work with their children. Neither Mark or I have ever au paired before, or even been trusted with our nieces for more than a few hours, but we were excited to find some creative ways to spend our time with Corrado, 5 and Adelaide, 9.

First meetings

Mama Virginia knew us straight off the train and it wasn't long before we were on our way home and getting a run down on everything from the landscape and local culture to the children's temperaments and excitement for the World Cup.

But is was clear this was no ordinary family. Arriving at Nonni's we were introduced to more aunts, cousins and sisters than I could remember and it seemed that everyone was gifted in some way, be it as an artist, musician or singer.

Nonni's is also where we met the kids for the first time; Adelaide smiling sweety at the door and Corrado from a distance as he ran around the pool completely naked!

Brutta figura

We met Papa Davide at the house and joined the family for dinner al fresco. We were amazed at the competency of their English, but were also happy to hear some more day to day Italian phrases and get the opportunity to ask what they meant.

During the meal Corrado didn't want to do something because it would be "brutta figura" which means ugly figure, or something embarrassing. It didn't take long for Corrado to forget all about this over the next week as he made faces, insisted in playing football naked and ate out of his belly button!

Corrado after a day of mushroom picking

Getting creative

Our first week we mainly looked after Adelaide as her school had already finished for the summer. Unfortunately the weather wasn't with us, but we kept each other entertained with documentaries, card games and some homework.

I had been inspired by the beautiful scenery and landscape around us and as soon as the weather turned we drove out to the neighbouring town to do some sketching. I'd noticed Adelaide's talent during a round of Pictonary and as I thought she flourished during our morning out.

The rest of the week we continued to get to know each other; the boys bonding over the football, and the girls over the food!

Mark, Adelaide and I in Fossano

Food glorious food!

Part of our reason for coming to Italy was because we loved Italian food, but during our stays in the cities we felt we weren't getting the real experience.

This was quickly addressed and put to bed as soon as we arrived in Piemonte. Mama claims she only knows about 15 recipes but we've already be feasting on fresh pesto, carbonara, mozzarella cartridges and ragu all coupled with fresh tomatoes, salad, wonderful cheeses and bread. I've never eaten so well, and I'm definitely making notes for when we get home!

8 weeks in Piedmont

We were lucky enough that in our first few weeks, Santo Stefano was having its annual festival. The weekend evenings saw the town square transformed into a hive of food, wine, beer and entertainment, and people came for near and far for the traditional dancing and music.

Fancy footwork at the Santo Stefano festival

Standing in the town square watching the traditional dancing with the vineyard spotted hills behind me, I though I'd fallen into a Peter Mayle book. But this wasn't Provence, this is Piemonte and that meant a new language, traditional foods and local wine.

I'm beginning the think these 8 weeks will be the most influential of all the time we have been travelling, as our thoughts turn from adventure to building a new life in the UK.

I can't wait to find out more over the coming weeks! Ciao x

Florence

30 May - 3 June

After a very scenic and comfortable train ride through the countryside we arrived in Florence before the morning was over.

Dreamy Tuscan villa

We had been to Tuscany a few years ago. We stayed at a winery in Gaiole in Chianti and visited Siena, Pisa and San Gimignano, falling utterly in love with the rolling hills and vineyards. This time we were only visiting Florence though and it felt more like a city than I was expecting. After a little wondering though, the Tuscan charm started to reveal itself in the small alleys and the wine.

Pretty houses on the banks of the Arno

Florence has a lot to offer art fans, and despite my not being able to tell my Michaelangelo from my DaVinci I tried to appreciate what I could. We made time to visit 'David' and the Duomo.

Duomo

One of the highlights for me was taking the walk across the river to Piazzele Michaelangelo for a stunning panoramic view of the city and the surrounding countryside. On a quieter corner of the square was stared out to the hills listening to the birds a sing in the olive grove below. It was a peaceful moment in a city that was bursting with tourists!

View of Florence

One morning to went for a run in the park nearly. It was a Sunday and full with families walking, runners, cyclists and kids learning to ride their bike. On one side there was a little fair and a market and it was nice to find a slice of local life. I'm really starting to enjoy getting off the tourist path and finding more day to day things to fill our time. I even had a chance to make dinner at our bed and breakfast which was lovely after 3 months of eating out. Its not long now until we finish our travels and start living as au pairs and I'm excited to pack my bag away and settle in for a couple of months.

After our run, we had earned our gelato, and sat in the sun in Piazza Della Repubblica wolfing down cheesecake and snickers flavour whilst watching the carousel spin and sing.

Carousel in the square

One of the finds of our trip to Florence was a Latin bar called Eby's. Its a short walk from the Duomo but serves amazing smoothies and burritos. Mark and I love Mexican food and the burritos made for a great change from pasta and pizza! Be warned though they are huge! "This burrito is delicious but it is filling!"

On our last day we picked up some postcards across the river from Ponte Veccio and enjoyed some more aimless wanderings around this pleasant city! Before we knew it we were back at the train station waiting for our train to Bologna!