A small town with Etruscan origins, built from baked earth bricks and set firmly on the ancient road that once linked Canterbury in England to the heart of Renaissance Europe (la Francigena) annually hosts a prestigious olive oil festival. A celebration of and a proud tribute to the ancient art of olive oil production takes place every year in the tiny town of San Quirico d’Orcia, near Montalcino in southern Tuscany. The streets of this medieval town fill with people from all across the globe, with one uniting desire… to taste and savour the new oil, freshly harvested from this mysterious land.

San Quirico d’Orcia can boast to having a total of around 2,500 inhabitants and finds itself in the province of Siena, Tuscany. This jewel of a town has developed within a small microclimate which hosts fine vineyards, thermal spas and exceptional olive groves. Better known for it’s famous group of cypress trees planted in a beautiful grain field that have been photographed by most visitors to this region. San Quirico d’Orcia is also famed for it’s architecture, which includes the stunning Castello di Vignoni, a breathtaking Romanesque church called San biaggio a Vignoni and a unique ancient tower. San Quirico d’Orcia is a town that symbolises the beauty, poise and humility of the as yet, almost un-discovered Tuscany… the Val d’Orcia.

The quality of the olive oil from the region is displayed proudly by local producers immediately after the olive harvest in early December. The town has the chance to express an entire year’s work in just one weekend of debauched oil tasting. Stalls are set up, toasted bread (bruschetta) is dowsed in oil, mulled wine is warmed in traditional terracotta vessels and polenta (maize flour)is deep-fried in olive oil to produce healthy chips. The streets of this ancient Etruscan town are illuminated with subtle Christmas lights and even the usually severe traffic wardens turn a blind eye to the hoards of cars parked illegally. Children, old men and women stand side by side, eager to taste the oil from the new harvest.

The oil festivals in Italy are not only about tasting oil and they are not just about locals competing against each other. They are also an excuse to unite the community just weeks before Christmas. Therefore both Hannah and I would like to take this opportunity to wish all of you… Tanti Auguri (Best festive wishes) from Tuscany…

by Jonathan Radford & Hannah Summers