Enoteca - da Gennaro

To drink wine is an art
To taste it is a science
To discuss it is culture

Bottles of wine arranged on shelves in an Enoteca

Pinocchio drinking wine; in vino veritas?

A GLASS OF WINE AND FRIENDLY CONVERSATION GO WELL TOGETHER

Bottles of wine are very decorative

Poems written by people who only drink water don't have lasting appeal;

The colours of the Italian flag are always a cheerful sight

Good lighting shows of the lovely colours of the wine

Keep Calm motto can be adapted to all needs

In Italy when you see a sign saying Enoteca you know you've got a treat in store. It's like going in to an Aladdin's cave. Bottles of wine displayed in such a way as to highlight their jewel- like colours of amber,ruby, amethyst,rose. Enoteca means you will find wine arranged on shelves, just like biblioteca which means Library  is where you will find books displayed on shelves.

Enoteca- wine on shelves

Biblioteca- books on shelves.

Today I met a charming man called Gennaro who runs an Enoteca who misses his daughter who is working in London. We had a long conversation about families, missing people, talking on skype while you're all having dinner and sort of pretending that that is just as good as being together. We talked about the phrase  keep calm and carry on and how it has caught on and is now everywhere in some form or other, on coffee mugs.greetings cards, clothing. He had a sign up that his daughter had brought back from London, I've got a birthday card that says Keep calm and lie about your age. 

Oh yes and we talked a lot about wine too.

Now I have to be careful with wine , just one glass, each sip savoured carefully as I think about the grapes ripening in the sun, the vineyards beautifully looked after and adding grace, order and colour to the countryside. Just one glass , then a sign caught my eye , it said something about poetry that is written under the influence of wine is much better than poetry written after a glass of water . Well we' ll see about that later .

Salute, cin cin, cheers, and here's to us all.

A gift from London