There is a moment, around mid-October, when Tuscia changes its smell. In the Cimini woods the chestnuts are gathered, the olive mills start pressing, and on restaurant menus appears the word that stays in the background all summer: truffle. It is the season when this province is at its best at the table — and, not by chance, the cheapest time to come.
Chestnuts from the Cimini mountains
The Cimini are Tuscia's mountains: thick woods that begin half an hour from us and climb to a thousand metres. From there come the chestnuts of the Cimini, which in autumn end up everywhere — roasted on street corners, in soups, cakes and even beer.
The moment all this becomes a celebration is the Chestnut Festival of Soriano nel Cimino, twenty minutes from the villa: nearly sixty years of editions, the whole village in medieval costume and the taverns of the districts serving real Viterbo cooking. Our guide to the festival explains how it works and how to plan.
Truffle, and where to eat it properly
Truffle here is not a tourist-menu flourish: it is a product of this land. The black one accompanies the warm months, but the real moment comes in autumn, with the white. The gastronomic capital within reach is Orvieto, just over the Umbrian border: the dish to order is umbrichelli al tartufo, the local fresh pasta, thick and rough, made of nothing but flour and water. This is the finest period — the town smells of it and the summer crowds have gone. Our guide to Orvieto covers the rest: the Duomo, St Patrick's Well, the underground city.
New oil and wines nobody knows
Between late October and November the mills press the new olive oil: green, dense, peppery in the throat. This is when it is worth buying straight from the producers instead of the supermarket — and you taste the difference on a slice of bread.
On wine, Tuscia has an advantage tourism has not yet ruined: you drink well for little, because these labels are not fashionable yet. Ask for the local one without hunting for known names: it is the best way to eat around here.
Planning a food weekend
The advice is not to rush. Saturday: morning in a Cimini village, a slow lunch, afternoon in the woods when the leaves have turned; Sunday: Orvieto at the table, and home with new oil in the car. If you land on a festival weekend, bear in mind the villages fill up: arrive early or arrive late, never at noon.
And if it rains — it does in autumn — no matter: everything moves indoors, and in the evening you light the fire.
Where to stay
Villa Vacanze Valentina is in Bassano in Teverina, province of Viterbo, open all year: two apartments in the villa and a wooden cottage for two. In autumn the house really earns its keep — full kitchens for cooking what you buy at the market, heating, and in one of the two apartments a fireplace with firewood included. Soriano is twenty minutes away, Viterbo twenty-five, Orvieto about fifty minutes, Rome one hour.
If you want to see what the cold season looks like here, we have gathered everything on our Winter in Tuscia page: hot springs, empty villages and evenings by the fire.
Produce seasons vary from year to year: before setting out for a festival or a market, always check dates and programmes on the official channels of the local council or tourist association. Cover image: an atmospheric illustration created for our blog.
