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BGilbertSound wrote a review Oct 2016
Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States19 contributions2 helpful votes
First off, a clarification... Save Vernazza is a workday program where you do a half day of work and pay a small fee, and they feed you lunch after your "shift" is over. You get to meet some of the residents of Vernazza and do something good to try to help preserve the town and their traditional way of life, which is under threat of being "loved to death" by the hoards of tourists who descend on the town each season. I've wanted to do something like this even before the terrible floods that did so much damage. Our day started at 8AM when we met Laura and local farmer Illaurandro and four other "workers" at the train station. We headed up into the fields above town to pick grapes. Sadly, the "cinghiale..." wild boar... had gotten into the field and eaten much of his crop. We managed to find about two crates of grapes that the pigs missed and picked those. Next, we found the spot where the pigs had gotten in. They had destroyed a section of drystone retaining wall. We helped shovel the dirt back above the breech and plugged the gap with fencing and boards. It was hard work, but not too hard... anyone with a normal level of activity should be able to handle it (I'm 56 and a tad overweight, and it was no problem for me). We broke for lunch early- about 11- because it was unseasonably hot and we'd finished mending the wall and there were no more grapes to harvest. Laura spread out a terrific picnic that had been prepared by one of the volunteers in town, and we sampled a bottle of Illaurando's red from last year- fantastic wine, and not available for sale anywhere. After lunch we headed back to town (accompanied by some amazing views of town) and visited Illaurando's wine cellar, where he broke out a bottle of last year's white, since the previous group did not drink ANY wine (what, were they NUTS?). It was easily the highlight of our trip, and I cannot wait to go back and do it again. I only wish I had gotten Laura and Illaurandro's email before we left! Suitable for children or families? Probably not young children, as it was real work and there is a risk of falling. But I'd say 13yrs old and up would be OK, as long as they don't mind WORK. Like I said, it isn't too hard, but it ain't exactly like playing Pokemon Go, either.…
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Date of experience: October 2016
Helpful
I would never have signed up for this except for my friend's invitation. We had a great day! Two lovely young ladies accompanied us to the terraced vineyard of a small farmer who needed help digging up the weeds around his vines. Overlooking the Mediterranean Sea, worked for a couple of hours, took a break and had some cake, the another hour or so until we ate lunch in the vineyard and drank the farmer's wine. Good hard work and so appreciated by our farmer. Would definitely do it again.…
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Date of experience: September 2016
Helpful
Have a spectacular sunset with a clever selection of wines made by Alessando, discovering new labels from around Cinque Terre and all over Italy.
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Date of experience: October 2015
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Quiet, relaxing and great wine. Difficult to find in the narrow alleys of Vernazza. But the view to the sea is amazing.
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Date of experience: August 2015
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My husband and I happened to find the save Vernazza wine & food discovery through the accommodation we had booked in Vernazza. Although it was a little difficult finding the venue, when we did find it it was amazing! An incredible deck looking out over the Mediterranean sea while the sun was setting. My husband and I found the evening very informative, the wine delicious and the food delightful. I would recommend this event to anyone who is interested in learning little about the wine of the region. If you love eating food and drinking wine, this is a night for you! :)…
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Date of experience: June 2014
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