ABRUZZO

For nature lovers, Abruzzo is synonymous with Gran Sasso Mountain and its National Park. It is true that from a naturalist point of view this region boasts rare species of flora and fauna like the Marsican Brown Bear and the Apennine Wolf. Gran Sasso is without a doubt a great destination for skiers, alpinists, excursionists and all mountain enthusiasts.

Abruzzo offers even more: beach establishments, religious itineraries, folklore and the artisan products of large and small towns. You can find tranquillity and relaxation in a region where life flows along at a relaxed pace and on a simple, uncomplicated human scale.

Rural tourism facilities are mostly family-run structures and they are an ideal destination of hiking enthusiasts, but they are also great for those looking for a vacation in close contact with nature and farm-style traditions.

DON'T MISS THE FESTIVAL

Procession of the Serpari in Cocullo (Aq)

The Procession dei Serpari takes place in the small town of Cocullo on the first Thursday in May in honour of patron Saint Dominic with a festival that recalls the ancient memory of pre-Christian traditions. The saints frequently inherited the role of sacred pre-Christian figures and St. Dominic is no exception: his characteristics and healing abilities were distinctive of the Great Mother Angitia, a divinity of the Marsi: a statue of the divinity with a serpent raised in its left hand was found near the Lake of Fucino.

THE SERPARI. For a group of shepherds, like the Marsi people, who passed a great deal of the summer months in the hills with their flocks, a primary danger was the treacherous snake coiled in the sun. Back then, the Great Mother was invoked for protection, just as St. Dominic is invoked today.
The Serparo is a legendary figure in Abruzzo with roots in their ability, which the Marsi people were well known for, to charm snakes and to make their venom harmless.

The method is really quite simple: the snake is offered a felt hat to bite and after it bites the hat its teeth are removed.

On the day of the festival, the statue of the Saint is covered in snakes that have been captured and rendered harmless and carried on the people’s shoulders throughout the streets of the city. The statue is preceded by the clergy and four young men in costumes bearing ciambelli, the recipe for which is passed down from one generation to the next. The snakes slither and wind around the necks and arms of the faithful and the serpari.

The choreography of the ceremony creates and exhorts a profound anguish in the collective subconscious that is strongly excited by one of the greatest and most vibrant symbols of the forces of Evil: the snake.

The pilgrims meet in Cocullo for the occasion. They are mostly from Sora where the Saint died in 1031 and from the USA, which was the land of choice for emigrants from Cocullo.

THE WINES IN ABRUZZO

Abruzzo is a land that is well known for hearty well-prepared food and this is equally valid for its wines. Considering the land, which is mainly mountainous, especially in the region’s interiors, the cultivation of the vineyards extends along the coast and in the hillside present in the first hills of the inland area.

Three types of wine from the Abruzzo region have had considerable success and they are Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Trebbiano d'Abruzzo and Cerasuolo d'Abruzzo.
Beyond being the most famous wine in the region Montepulciano is probably also the best. It is red, but not too intense and though it remains recognizable it does change flavour from one zone to another and from one cantina to the next. It has the characteristic of foaming after two or three years even though professionals in the area are making great headway with respect to times past. With new processing techniques, they are searching to lengthen the aging times of this superb dinner wine.

Trebbiano is the only white wine produced in the region. It is not very acidic and it has a pleasant bouquet.

Cerasuolo is a light, dry red with fruity undertones. Its aging characteristics are similar to Montepulciano and it also tends to foam after two or three years.

The three wines present throughout the area, which crosses the Gran Sasso d’Italia, and continues out to the sea, includes the four provinces Aquila, Teramo, Pescara, Chieti. In this zone, wine tasting can make an interesting travel itinerary beginning in Aquila, with its Fountain of 99 Spouts in memory of the castles that gave rise to the city. Then head in the direction of Chieti, which allows for a series of interesting visits. Along the many country roads, you will find enchanting atmosphere and the possibility for tasting local products that are downright delicious. Following the coast and after reaching Pescara, it is possible to reach the province of Teramo along the Via Litoranea road, which offers an amazing view of the sea. The incredible view offered here is still not properly appreciated.

THE FLAVOURS OF ABRUZZO

The landscape in this region has profoundly influenced its development. From here there is a great deal of space between the various centres and the sea, with all of the imaginable consequences on the social-economic development of society in Abruzzo. All of this reflects on the cuisine to favour the use of traditional local ingredients and also to help keep antique traditions alive since they are not heavily influenced by external factors.

FIRST COURSES. The different characteristics of the individual zones in Abruzzo are mirrored in the wide variety of traditional cuisine which has as its unifying element hot peppers, which are also great for combating the cold in the mountain regions. Try the scrippelle ‘mbusse, which are very thin crunchy fritters made from eggs, milk, flour, parsley and grated cheese that are rolled up like a tube and cooked in a dish and covered with steaming broth. When they are opened up, they are layered together with meat sauce, scamorza cheese, grated cheese, slices of hard-boiled egg, vegetables (mostly artichokes and green peas) and placed in the oven to make the inviting timballo di scrippelle which is common in Pescara. The ricetta delle virtù is popular in Teramo, this legume minestrone has vegetables and pork ground into chunks flavoured with a hambone and wild herbs, with homemade pasta in different shapes. A simple and highly diffused country style soup is sagne (fettucine hand cut from eggless pasta) with beans. Legumes are also present in polenta e fagioli a hearty dish with a sauce made from sautéing bacon, wine and hot pepper in a little olive oil together with a sausage for each portion.

After soups we move to pasta, which may begin nowhere else than with maccheroni alla chitarra, the most famous pasta from Abruzzo. It is made with a traditional device (called the chitarra) with taut strings. The piece of egg and flour pasta dough is pressed on top of this with the rolling pin to make wide or less wide maccheroni depending on the distance that the steel strings are placed from one another. It is generally topped with a mixed meat sauce (which always has lamb), grated sheep cheese and the constant touch of hot pepper. Once again pasta dough is used for rustic fregnacce a filled pasta made of around 20 centimetre squares filled with a meat, egg and sheep cheese mixture folded in four and covered with a sauce that has been exalted with a touch of hot pepper. Gnocchi are not to be missed topped in Pescara style with rabbit stew (but just as tasty with lamb stew).

The first course fish dishes include trout risotto with saffron, which allows us to remember this traditional product obtained by grinding the pistils of crocus flowers that grow in the highest and barest areas of the Abruzzo mountains. Do not forget the brodetto alla pescarese characterized by the combination of fish and dried bell peppers ground with a mortar according to the ancient fisherman’s tradition.

SECOND COURSES. Meats are prepared very simply and they include mostly lamb or pork dishes. Some of the favourites are pecora alla callara or cottura. Other important specialties derive from the killing of the family sow, like cif e ciaf constituted by ribs and fresh bacon cut and marinated with white wine. Another dish called ‘ndocca ‘ndocca proposes the simple boiling of the meat “to be discarded” with garlic, bay, rosemary and hot pepper after having left it overnight in a water and vinegar mixture.

THE DESSERTS. Among the desserts we mention the festive crocus pistils in ferratelle allo zafferano, a traditional cookie from Aquila that owes its name to the “ferri” used to cook the round biscuits made from a dough of flour, egg, sugar, olive oil, anise liqueur and saffron. A discussion on patisserie in Abruzzo may not end without remembering the famous confetti di Sulmona, where the tradition was started at the start of the sixteenth century by the nuns of the Santa Chiara convent. In the city of Abruzzo confectionary assumes varied forms, colours and shapes in clear testimony to high level artisan craftsmanship marked by skill and imagination.

Chosen for you

- Horse riding holidays
- Beauty Farms
- Agricamping
- Bio farms
- Pets welcome
- Wheelchair access

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