Bel Vino

Ten years ago, Isabella and Luigi Dusi left behind their old lives and found a new life in Montalcino, a village that has perched for centuries atop a hill in Tuscany. In Bel Vino, Isabella takes the reader on a winding journey to discover the true aristocratic origins of the world-renowned wine, Brunello di Montalcino, on whose vintage the fortunes of many of the Montalcinesi depend. Taking us through the seasons of the wine harvest, Dusi weaves a path that takes in the white-hooded monks who have lived in the Abbey of Sant' Antimo since 814; the harvesting of mushrooms, olives, grapes, and truffles; an archery contest where passions run high; and the fight to save a thousand-year-old church with no foundations. A leisurely exploration of a medieval Tuscan village, its people, and its fabled wine.