Welcome to the 900 year old Castello Trebbio, the former home of the Pazzi family in the Chianti region. This Castle has a famous and bloody history given that it was the place where the Pazzis tried to do away with the Medicis! The plot involved the Pope, the bishop of Pisa and the local church, but it was not to be. In the end, the entire Pazzi family along with the bishop were either tossed from the windows of the church or hung from the walls by their neck. Only one Pazzi family member, who was married to the sister ofthe Medici prince was allowed to live. Today, the castle houses a young family with two passions: wine making and pressing quality olive oil. 
Our visit included tasting some interesting local wines, including a super-Tuscan called Pezzano and an interesting dessert wine called Vin Santo. Here, instead of dipping biscotti in coffee or tea, they dip it into the sweet wine--not a bad idea! This was also where we were surprised to learn of the origin of the word 'fiasco'. It seems that before there was any regulation for wine in the region, farmers blended whatever they had pressed, with whatever was available cheaply and bottled it in a straw covered bottle called the "Fiasco". If you're of the same vintage as us, you might have some fond memories of these straw bottles covered with wax drippings from many burning candles while sitting around listening to Jimmy Hendrix or the Stones. Boy, things sure have changed! The wine is better, not sure about the music.
Here the olive oil is still picked and pressed by hand and stored in large clay pots. Clay pots are now outlawed for mass production, but small boutique producers are still able to use the old methods. The 'extra virgin', first pressing is delicious. We've been amazed at how much olive oil is used here. The average Italian uses a liter a month. It's placed on the table with all food, drizzled on bread, pizza, soup and even some desserts. We've become even greater fans of this golden oil.
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