ARTISAN BEER IN ITALY: A TUSCAN FESTIVAL September 6/8 2013

It may seem like a sacrilege, but for once skip the best Brunello wineries and head for a beer instead. But not just any beer. Only a proper Italian artisan beer should convince you to leave Tuscany's wine mecca behind for a night in Buonconvento. Montalcino's much less famous but very enchanting neighbor may not be known for world class wines - understandably so, being located at the bottom of the valley - but it definitely has a future when it comes to craft beer.

So for once don't drive uphill for Brunello tasting, but hop on a shuttle bus and meet Italy's and Belgium's microbreweries down in the valley at the VILLAGGIO DELLA BIRRA festival. The shuttle bus runs from San Quirico d'Orcia and Siena too. A great option for people who are planning to taste each single artisan beer. Or as an alternative bring your tent. The craft beer festival takes place in a beautiful villa near Buonconvento where camping is an option too!

Maremma Natural Park: Belgian beer on a Tuscan beach

Too much wine? Have a beer in Tuscany.

And whilst I love anything Italian, I can't wait to finish off the night with a Belgian gueuze. Or two. After all I won't have to drive.

VILLAGGIO DELLA BIRRA 2013; ARTISAN BEER FESTIVAL
SEPTEMBER 6 to 8, 2013
BUONCONVENTO, FATTORIA LA PIANA

To ground yourself have a break from time to time and visit Buonconvento's beautiful museums instead.

SANT'ANTIMO ABBEY - TUSCANY'S ROMANESQUE TREASURE

Sant'Antimo abbey near Montalcino You don't have to be a catholic to remain spellbound by the eternal beauty of the Sant'Antimo abbey. The Tuscan church and monastery can turn a stubborn skeptic into a reborn spiritual. At least for the time of the visit.

SWIMMING, READING AND DINING IN BAGNO VIGNONI

Whilst the sell-out of tourist destination is a well known plague all through Italy, t here exists a tiny town in UNESCO Heritage Val d'Orcia which forgoes made in China souvenirs and just opened a bookshop instead. Bagno Vignoni is one of Tuscany's oldest tourist destinations. In fact the historic spa town has never been anything else than a tourist destination, and the ratio of inhabitants to visitors must always have been at least 1 to 10. Having looked after medieval pilgrims, ailing popes and saints ( St. Catherine of Siena used to live here for a while), Bagno Vignoni isn't tempted at all to put out plastic chairs or pizza takeaways for present day travelers. I used to live close to Bagno Vignoni and have fond memories of chasing my first -born around the town's main square which consists of a steaming hot water pool (a must-see sight for urban architects!). Our healthy mornings were usually finished off with a slice of fudge chocolate c

VAL D'ORCIA: A MAP OF THE UNESCO HERITAGE SITE

About 40 minutes south of Siena and a bit over an hour from the Tuscan coast, Val d'Orcia lies to the east of the Maremma and to the west of Montepulciano and Umbria. The UNESCO world heritage site is made up by the territories of Montalcino, San Quirico d'Orcia (with historic spa town Bagno Vignoni ) , Pienza, Castiglione d'Orcia and Radicofani. The Orcia river crosses two more municipalities (Castel del Piano and my hometown Cinigiano ), where it divides the province of Siena from the province of Grosseto (Tuscany's two southernmost areas) before flowing into the Ombrone river. View VAL D'ORCIA MAP in a larger map

Mapping MONTALCINO

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