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Historical News
The commune of Valtopina,
along with Nocera Umbra, Assisi, Spello, Bastia Umbra and Torgiano
is part of the Monte Subasio area.
The homonymous Comunità
Montana includes the Natural Parks of Subasio Mountain and the
Colfiorito one. All that offers an environment merged in nature,
still intact that still nowadays succeeds in offering a high level
of hospitality and very respectuful food & wine products.
The Monte Subasio, placed
horizontally as to the Umbria-Marche Appennini chain, dominates the
surrounding land. To the west is the wide Umbrian valley, to the
East is the Topino river valley. |
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Valtopina
The village of Valtopina lays on the
valley floor but the inhabited nucleus included in the jurisdiction:
Giove, Sasso, Gallano, Pasano, Serra, Balciano, Colfulignato,
Vallemare, Poggio, S.Cristina and Franchillo get lost through a both
hilly and mountainous land.
There are many ancient historical and
civil ruins such as castles and churches, among them Saint Cristina,
in the homonymous place, built up over the ruins of the ancient
castle that had the same name.
Valtopina village can be reached by the
Flaminia road and provides tourists with its ancient historical
witnesses such as the castles of Poggio, Gallano, Pasano and Serra.
History
The history of that land is marked by
its transitory position along the valley of the Topino river close
to the Flaminia road. The actual centre of Valtopina was formerly
called La Cerqua (the oak).
By 1867 the Municipium plant that
formerly was by the Poggio Castle, was moved to that site. Since
1936 to 1947 Valtopina was part of the Foligno jurisdiction and then
turned autonomous again in 1948.
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The landscape of that land is a
consequence of its geological structure and of the history of its
inhabitance.
As it was tight between the massives of
Subasio and Pennino mountains its fame its due to the Mostra Mercato
del Tartufo (Truffle Show Fair) that occurs on the last two week
ends of November.
The protagonist product shows any
species of itself: the white, the nero pregiato (precious black)
(very frequent around Valtopina), the black from Subasio, the
scorzone (thick-skinned) the uncinato (hooked) and the bianchetto
(blanket).
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Assisi – though it is already a
stage of “Cantico” Wines Road
Assisi is well known for being
the native land of one of the Italian Saint Patrons: San Francesco,
for its religious value exported worldwide by information and
tourism.
Spello – Along with
Assisi it mainly represents the Saint Frncesco’s native land and
even that village is part of the same “Cantico” Wines Road as well.
Looking at Assisi and Spello from afar
they look like “inhabited mantles” that softly cover the mountains
where they lays over.
A well know painter from Spello is
called: Norberto who has “casually” chosen the Friar as the main
subject of his “naif” paintings.
In the month of may, during the Corpus
Domini Day, Spello gets coloured with spring flowers and a contest
is set to award the most beautiful flowery composition.
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Bastia – If Assisi is
and will always be the historical centre, thus the tourist one as
well in that area, Bastia laying at its feet represents the
industrial and sales area.
As it is placed in the plain area
dominated by the Subasio Mountain nowadays it is an important
economical pole for the Assisi area.
Nocera Umbra – Nocera
soon reminds you of the typical Umbrian Nature; the landscape is
entirely mountainous with the strong shapes of Pennino, Finiglia,
Merlana e Penna and the hills of Monte dei Cani (Dogs Mountain top).
The roundish tops of the mountains are
covered with meadows that show shiny flowerings in the Springtime
among which there are Orchids, crocus and Peonies. |
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Torgiano and the Museum
of Wine of Lungarotti Foundation
Even this important centre, where you produce a DOC
wine that takes its name from the native land (rightly Torgiano DOC
“Rosso”), is a fixed stage but forced while running along the
“Cantico” Wines Road.
There lays the Museum of wine, a centre of
information about local wine and vine production supported by
historical findings, instruments dated of any eve and multimedia
visual means, and that museum was wished and nowadays is still
promoted by Lungarotti Foundation.
Not far from Torgiano stands
the plateau and park of Colfiorito whose typical product is the red
potato, suitable for roast meats and fillings for home made pasta.
From Torgiano up to the slopes
of both mountains (Subasio and Colfiorito) mainly you can find vines
and olive groves.
Especially the latter ones find
their own suitable conditions there as to the rest of Umbria. From
the close Cannara village you can have the well known onion in all
its species, for every taste and for every purpose.
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For further
information:
Valtopina Commune
Comunità Montana Monte Subasio
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Strangozzi con trota e tartufo
nero (Strangozzi with trout and black truffle)
Ingredients: 400 g of
strangozzi (raw spaghetti with a square section), 150 gr of trout
fillet, 60 gr of black truffle, 600 gr of cherry tomatoes, 1 onion,
extra virgin olive oil.
Proceeding: Mince the
onion and brown it in a little extra virgin olive oil. Add the trout
fillet cut in stripes and cook on high flame for 5-6 minutes, join
the peeled tomatoes, deprived of their seeds and cut in dices. Cook
them again for a while on a high flame, leave them out of the fire
and add the black truffle sliced with the suitable tool (mandolina –
truffle cutter). Drain the pasta and dress it directly on the pan
where the sauce has been cooked.
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where to eat
where to buy
Ciboviaggiando suggests: