THE MAGIC OF SPELLO

Perched on the southern slopes of Mount Subasio, Spello is a postcard-pretty little town boasting a remarkable artistic and cultural heritage. A jumble of honey-hued stone buildings with weathered wooden doors and terracotta roof tiles huddles on a hillside, enclosed by walls from the Augustan age. Five ancient Roman gates welcome visitors to the old centre, beckoning them in to explore its magical maze of alleys adorned with blooming balconies and hanging baskets. On the day of Corpus Christi additional splashes of colour are provided by the marvellous flower carpets created for the Infiorata Festival, Spello’s most famous religious celebration. Every year, on the ninth Sunday after Easter, green-fingered citizens try to outdo each other by assembling leaves and petals in elaborate compositions, turning the streets into a riot of hues and scents.

Your chauffeur will meet you at your accommodation and drive you to Spello. Your guide will be waiting at the meeting point ready to lead you across charming squares, along narrow lanes, past historic buildings on a quest for the town’s best-loved landmarks. Your first stop is the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, housing Spello’s most prized jewel. Here Pinturicchio, one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance, decorated the Baglioni Chapel in 1501 with precious frescoes featuring Scenes from the Life of the Virgin Mary and Christ’s Childhood. Your guide will point out features of particular significance and explain how the painter’s skilful use of a brilliant palette, his realistic representation of space, perspective and light and painstaking attention to detail have earned this cycle its rightful place among the masterpieces of the history of Italian art. Just a few steps away, inside the Church of Sant’Andrea you may admire another of Pinturicchio’s works, the splendid 1508 panel painting portraying a Madonna enthroned with Saints. From here a short walk will take you to the monumental Porta Venere gate and Towers of Properzio where you will turn the clock back to the 1st century BC and hear about Spello’s early beginnings as a prosperous Roman colony. Not to be missed are also Piazza Comunale, dominated by the 13th century town hall, and the Belvedere, a panoramic terrace from which you will take in sweeping views of the verdant Umbrian landscape.

After some free time for lunch rejoin your driver and reach one of the region’s leading wineries. The history of this pioneering estate began in 1971 when a textile entrepreneur first purchased a plot of land near Montefalco with the aim of reviving the native Sagrantino grape variety, back then almost unknown outside of Umbria. The winery owes its fortunes to the founder’s son who took over the helm in 1988. As a firm believer in the potential of this terroir and great opportunities that could derive from revitalising traditional flavours by means of an innovative approach to wine making, he set out to work on revolutionising the company. His immense dedication brought about massive changes to all of the winery’s activities: from the application of modern production methods and management, to research and promotion. Today this estate prides itself on creating top quality, elegant Sagrantino di Montefalco wines and has made a significant contribution to Umbria’s well-deserved reputation as a fine wine producing region.

On a tour of the premises, led by a qualified member of staff, guests will get to know the history and achievements of this estate. They will also hear about wine making and ageing techniques and discover the distinctive characteristics of the soil and climate that make wines produced here so complex and powerful. A tasting of the estate’s wines will allow you to better appreciate the results of fifty years of wine growing wisdom…. cheers to Umbria!

Your chauffeur will drive you back to your accommodation in the afternoon.