Excursion to Nemi

We think any excursion to the Castelli Romani must include the gorgeous town and lake of Nemi. It is a very magical mysterious place!!

It is also famous for strawberries

Do you want to join us on an excursion from Rome?

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Castelli Romani Day Trip from Rome

I have recently discovered how to make photo collages so I made one of our most recent excurion with guests to the Castelli Romani. I think it sums up a perfect day trip. Our excursions are well rounded experiences that include wine, food and history.
For excursion ideas check out our website

Olevano Romano and Cesanese Wine Grape Excursion From Rome

We had a lovely day trip from Rome yesterday. We had an in depth visit at a vineyard and wine tasting of the Lazio red wine grape Cesanese. Then a lovely lunch in a trattoria with local products and wine followed by a visit to the hauntingly beautiful medieval monastery in Subiaco.

Here are some photos!

Check out our Cesanese Wine Excursion From Rome

Rome in the Spring

It has been so much fun leading tours in Rome lately. There is wonderful food available during our culinary stroll and it has been great walking through the city for cultural tours as well.

New Website

We have redesigned our website and added more tours that focus.on wine and food in Lazio and Rome.

Check out the site and let us know what you think!

Florence

Florence is one of the most beautiful cities in Italy. We lead day trips and excursions from Rome. And Florence can easily be arranged

Umbria for winelovers

Feb 15th Master Tasting led by Patrick Farrell MD MW, a really great taster and a wonderful person.

Pasta with black truffles

Wonderful wine from Castello delle Regine at dinner

Montefalco-birthplace of the Sagrantino grape

Montefalco for art lovers-Perugino

Tenuta CastelBuono

Sagrantino di Montefalco from Tenuta CastelBuono

Gothic Cathedral in Orvieto

Umbrian sunset

Castello della sala

Dinner at Castello della Sala

Last month I had the honor of joining a fantastic group of #winelovers for the first anniversary of the founding of the group #winelover.  Although I could not make the entire conference, I was able to join from the 15th to the 17th in which time I got a better understanding of the Umbrian wine industry.  I started with the master tasting led by Master of Wine Patrick Farrell MD where we tasted wines made from both Umbrian grapes and international grapes.  I found that the wines made native grapes expressed the terroir much better than the international grapes. Riesling in Umbria makes no sense to me.  But it seems that in Umbria, the fashion is to dig up vineyards of Umbrian grapes and plant the typical grapes like Chardonnay, and strangely, Riesling.  I do have strong opinions about this, which I will publish on my wine blog at a later date.  Suffice to say that the best wines of Umbria were those where tradition is valued.  Sagrantino is a wonderful grape that makes age worthy wines that I want to drink for years to come.

On Saturday we had winery visits which also included towns such as Montefalco and Orvieto.  Umbria is a great place to visit in Italy because it has a wonderful food and wine tradition but also has great cultural wealth, both in the modern -like the Tenuta CastelBuono winery-and the ancient.  From Etruscan to Roman to Gothic to today, I think Umbria is a perfect location for those who want to combine cultural experiences with food and wine experiences.   Truffles.  That is all I need to say.  Overall, I really great experience that helped me understand Umbrian wine and culture more. We’ve just added a food, wine and culture excursion to Orvieto from Rome.  My advice?  Skip Tuscany and enjoy Umbria.

A Visit To Palazzo della Cancelleria

Facade of the Palace

Family Crest of the della Rovere

The inner courtyard

Inner Courtyard

Copy of Roman relief from the burial chamber of a Roman general that fought under Domitian (found on site)-Original in the Vatican Museums

The fireplace (the most interested part of this hall

Gorgeous Ceiling

The strangest Jonah I have ever laid eyes on-Salviati

Cappella del Palio-Salviati

Ceiling in the Cappella del Palio-F. Salviati

Palazzo della Cancelleria was built between 1489 and 1513 for the Cardinal Riario who was the chancel of the Pope.  It is one of the first palaces in Rome built from the ground up in the “new” Renaissance style using scavenged travertine from the nearby Theatre of Pompey as well as Egyptian granite columns that were originally used to build the 5^th century church San Lorenzo in Damascus.  This church was engulfed by the palace.  Many hands have played a part in the execution of this palace including some of the most important families in Roman history such as the Della Rovere, the Farnese.  Some sources claim the palace is based on the designs of the great Bramante.

A visit to the place gives us a great idea of how Renaissance palaces looked like in Rome.  The palace is in a strategic area where there were two markets.  Inside you can see murals by Vasari and you can visit a chapel decorated by the mannerist artist Francesco Salviati in the Cappella del Palio.  Worth a visit to see the fireplace Julius III escaped from.

If you are interested in a private visit to this palace or any other place, please feel free to contact us at info@antiquatours.com

Or check us out at Antiqua Tours