Yes, this is a slightly odd title for a blog that's being posted in January, but I'll tell you the thinking behind it. After our planned opening this Autumn, our Abruzzo holiday villa rental venture in Ascigno should be in full swing by November. So it seems like a good idea to tell you what the region has in store for you at this particular time of year. (And to be honest, it also gives me an excuse to include some great pictures that I've been dying to run for ages !)

Key factor for many will be the weather. Abruzzo in autumn means a November average for the Chieti province of 61F/16C by day; 43F/6C by night. Going by the entirely unscientific evidence of the weather we personally experienced a couple of months back, actual highs on many days peaked at 68F/20C, while on a couple of nights, we had a little ground frost. There was some snow up in the ski resorts; we had rain about once a week, with just one day wet from start to finish.

The Wine and the Oil
In fact, the weather's a key factor in the daily life of an Abruzzo autumn. During November, unbroken dry spells are needed for the olive harvest. No harm will come to the olives if it rains while they're still on the tree, but ideally, they should be dry when picked. If they're not, they could rot before they go to the olive press. Even worse is rain after they've been picked and are still lying on the ground ungathered - but the farmers have an uncanny knack of judging when to pick - and when not.

And in addition to new season olive oil, November is also the month for new season wine. After the September/October harvest, the eagerly-awaited Novello Montepulciano d'Abruzzo is released during the month. The summer of 2007 was long and hot and the resulting Novello was sensational. This was my favourite from the nearby Cantina Miglianico for around €3 a bottle. Sadly, the season's short. Tradition dicates that Novello Montepulciano d'Abruzzo should be drunk by January 1 and right now, there's not a drop left.

The Scenery
Abruzzo's autumn colours last year were a real bonus. I'm not going to start getting into a turf war with New England, but the rich tints on display as we drove through the Maiella National Park one sunny Saturday would surely have stirred even the coldest heart.

But perhaps best of all, as November's outside the main holiday season, we seemed to have the Maiella pretty much to ourselves that particular day, so there was that delightful feeling of leisurely solitude that allows you to pull into the side of the road whenever a particularly stunning view demands it. It was warm, with just a hint of autumnal chill. Just sublime.

The Food
In the Abruzzo food calendar, autumn means mushrooms and truffles. Walk through the woods - especially on a Sunday afternoon - and you'll find you're sharing them with bands of dedicated fungus-hunters, shuffling through the trees, eyes down, knives and baskets poised for the harvest.

While wet weather's bad news for the olive growers, it's excellent news for the mushroom-pickers, ensuring a bumper crop at just the right degree of plump succulence. For a few weeks, mushrooms become…well…the flavour of the month really. I adore those big porcini, studded with garlic, drizzled with a little of the new oil and roasted. Or maybe sliced and fried with a few lardons of pancetta and a little cream and chopped parsley. Or with some pasta…

Here's our good friend Luca at the Osteria La Lumaca - our favourite restaurant in the old part of Pescara - with a trayful of goodies for the evening menu. Luca and his team are disciples of the Italian 'slow food' movement - an indignant, national response to the global 'fast food' culture. That adherence to old traditions and principles, but with a modern twist, means you'll eat some of the best Abruzzo food of your stay at La Lumaca. I'm going to be writing more about this restaurant in an upcoming post about Pescara, but for now, rest assured that yes, these mushrooms were just as delicious as they look !

(Click on pictures in text for larger images)

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 10th, 2008 at 3:01 pm and is filed under Daily Life, About Abruzzo. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.