At Martinmas the new wine is born: Est! Est!! Est!!!, Orvieto, Aleatico and Greco di Vignanello, cellars carved into tuff, and how to visit them near Rome.
"By San Martino, every must becomes wine," goes the Italian proverb. In 2026 the feast of San Martino, Martinmas, falls on Wednesday 11 November, and the week around it is the best of the year to step into a winery in Tuscia: the harvest is over, the new wine is settling in the barrels, the villages are quiet again. Rome is an hour's drive away. Here are the real wines of these hills, the cellars carved into tuff, and how to visit a winery when it is cold outside.
Why November is the right month
In summer, wineries work for passers-by; in November they work for themselves, and if you book ahead they have time to tell you about their wine. It is also the month of vino novello, which in Italy may go on sale from 30 October: a young wine, made to be drunk straight away, ideally with roast chestnuts.
Across Italy, from 1 to 15 November 2026, the Movimento Turismo del Vino runs Cantine Aperte a San Martino ("Open Cellars at Martinmas"): participating wineries offer tastings, tours and meetings with the producers. It is best to book: each winery sets its own times and prices; the list of who takes part is on the Movimento's website.
The real wines of these hills
Tuscia has no famous names like the Langhe or Chianti, which is exactly why you drink well here. Four appellations are worth the trip.
Est! Est!! Est!!! di Montefiascone
The white wine of Lake Bolsena, a DOC since 1966, made mainly from Trebbiano, with a share of Malvasia bianca. It is produced in Montefiascone and six other villages around the lake: Bolsena, Capodimonte, Gradoli, Grotte di Castro, Marta and San Lorenzo Nuovo. The name comes from a legend of 1111 that we tell in our guide to Lake Bolsena: a bishop's servant, three "Est" chalked on a tavern door, and a master who never left Montefiascone.
Orvieto
The historic white of the great tuff cliff, a DOC since 1971, from Grechetto and Trebbiano. It is not only Umbrian: the zone also includes villages in the province of Viterbo, such as Castiglione in Teverina and Bagnoregio. Beyond the dry version, look for the muffa nobile (noble rot) wine, sweet and deep, for aged cheeses. Orvieto is about 50 minutes from the villa; our guide also covers the cathedral and the underground city.
Aleatico di Gradoli
A sweet red made from Aleatico grapes (at least 95%) on the hills above the lake, a DOC since 1972. Garnet in colour, scented with red fruit: the wine for the end of a meal, with a jam tart or on its own by the fire.
Vignanello and its Greco
Our home appellation: the Vignanello DOC, created in 1992, covers the hills between the eastern slopes of the Cimini mountains and the Tiber, and its villages include Bassano in Teverina, where the villa stands. A white from Trebbiano, a red from Sangiovese and, above all, Greco di Vignanello, a white that won a gold medal at the 1911 International Exhibition in Turin. Vignanello is about 25 minutes away.
Where to stay
Villa Vacanze Valentina is in Bassano in Teverina, in the green heart of Tuscia: two apartments in the villa and a cottage for two.
Cellars carved into tuff
Tuff is the stone of this land: soft to dig, cool and steady inside. For centuries, people carved their cellars beneath their homes.
- Vignanello: the historic cellars of the old town are dug under the houses. In summer they all open together for the Wine Festival; in November the village celebrates the new wine, and above it stands Castello Ruspoli with its formal Italian garden.
- Castiglione in Teverina: on the Umbrian border, in the former Vaselli winery, the MUVIS wine museum spreads over five levels and descends about 27 metres into the hillside, down to barrels three metres across. Opening times and guided tours are on the museum's website.
- Orvieto: beneath the town lie caves and tunnels carved into the tuff since Etruscan times. A tour of the underground city explains better than any book why wine here has always been made below ground.
How to visit a winery in winter
- Always book, through the winery's website. Small estates are families: turn up unannounced and everyone may be out in the vineyard.
- Bring a jumper: carved cellars stay cool even when the sun is out.
- One or two wineries a day, not five. Better a slow visit and lunch in the village.
- Buy on the spot: it is the simplest way to take home the wine of the people you have just met.
- Whoever drives does not drink: just a taste, or take turns. Country roads on a November evening are dark and often damp.
Martinmas festivals in the villages
Around 11 November the villages celebrate the new wine. Vignanello has already announced its 2026 dates; for the other festivals, here is when they usually fall, and where to check.
- Vignanello, Festa dell'Olio e del Vino Novello (new oil and new wine): the 26th edition in 2026 runs from 6 to 8 and 13 to 15 November, with tours of Castello Ruspoli and the wine and oil trails. We tell its story in our article on the new oil and new wine festival in Vignanello; the programme is on the Pro Loco website.
- Blera, "Per San Martino ogni mosto diventa vino": the weekend closest to 11 November (7–9 in 2025), with a trail through around ten cellars in the old town. Dates on the Pro Loco di Blera website.
November is also the month of olive mills and chestnuts: for the full picture of the autumn table, read truffle and chestnuts in Tuscia.
A Martinmas weekend
Saturday: morning in Vignanello, the village and Castello Ruspoli, a booked winery visit, lunch in town. A slow afternoon, and the fire in the evening. Sunday: towards the lake, stopping in Montefiascone for Est! Est!! Est!!! and the view from the Rocca, or Orvieto for its white wine and underground city. Head home with a few bottles in the boot.
Where to stay: a real home in wine country
Villa Vacanze Valentina is in Bassano in Teverina, inside the Vignanello DOC area: two apartments in the villa, each for up to four guests, and the Lovers' Cottage for two, standing on its own with its private garden. In autumn the house works for you: full kitchens, dishwashers in the apartments, heating and, in one of the two apartments, a fireplace with firewood included. The large fenced garden is shared by the three homes; the pool is closed in November and reopens in mid-May.
Vignanello and Viterbo are about 25 minutes away, Orvieto about 50, the Orte A1 exit 15, Rome one hour. To see what life here is like in the cold months, visit our Winter in Tuscia page and our idea for a winter weekend near Rome.
Dates, times and opening of wineries and festivals change from year to year: before setting out, always check the official websites of the wineries, the Pro Loco associations and the Movimento Turismo del Vino. Cover image: Lake Bolsena and the countryside below Montefiascone (Somebody.gr, CC0, Wikimedia Commons).
