If you’re interested in terracotta, a visit to Impruneta, the home of terracotta in Tuscany, is well worth it. The artisans of Impruneta are producing more and more hand-painted terracotta in addition to their traditional raw clay ceramics. However, in addition to floor and roof tiles, the terracotta manufacturers of Impruneta and nearby Ferrone have been famous for centuries for their huge terracotta olive oil jars, orci (singluar orcio).
Tuscan terracotta olive oil jars – orci
Although these olive oil jars are much less used now for storing olive oil, they are still very popular as garden decorations and, in the case of antique orci, also for interior decorating. Since the clay of Ferrone is frost-resistant when baked into terracotta, these jar last for decades in garden settings, even when filled with earth to grow plants.
More about the terracotta of Impruneta.
More about Il Ferrone.
More about Tuscan olive oil.
About Elena Spolaor
Although Elena was born in Venice, she was brought up in Tuscany and is a historian and frequent contributor to online articles about life in Tuscany and Umbria. Her specialities are Tuscan and Umbrian local history and folklore.
- Web |
- More Posts(56)
Here are some similar topics:
Dario Cecchini, butcher and showman at Panzano in Chianti
Anyone visiting Panzano in Chianti, a pretty town on the via Chiantigiana halfway between Florence and Sienna, should drop in at Dario Cecchini’s butcher’s shop near Piazza Bucciarelli. Here you will see not only excellent cuts of meat and prepared meats, but with a bit of luck, Dario Cecchini himself – probably the most extravert… 
Bistecca alla Fiorentina, the grilled steak of Tuscany
Before beginning your visit to Tuscany, it will be worthwhile to “bone up” on bistecca alla Fiorentina, the grilled steak of Tuscany – how to select the steak, how to cook it, how to eat it. Not every visitor to Tuscany has heard that steak is a very popular speciality here. The meat classically come… 
Porchetta – Tuscan roast whole pig
To make porchetta in Chianti, you start with a big pig – some say it should be at least 120kg! This is not a suckling pig we’re cooking, it’s the real thing! The pig is carefully deboned and dressed with abundant rosemary, fennel and garlic, and filled with its own minced sweet meats, although the… 
Schiacciata con l’uva Tuscan grape bread
Schiacciata (“squashed”) is a flat bread about 2 cm thick that was originally cooked in the embers of the hearth. Variations of schiacciata are made throughout Italy. In Tuscany, it is often simply brushed with olive oil and sprinkled with salt. Here in Chianti, we enjoy schiacciata con l’uva, sometimes called focaccia. (In ancient Rome,… 
Porcini mushrooms in Chianti, Italy
Porcini mushrooms of Chianti are not to be missed. With the exception of morilles, funghi porcini are the most delicious of the mushrooms. Try to find or buy them fresh and cook them sliced in a bit of olive oil with nipitella (a kind of catamint or catnip that grows wild in Chianti). Serve over… 
San Miniato in Tuscany, location of a great truffle fair during November
For anyone interested in truffles or, indeed, Tuscan gastronomy in general, San Miniato in Tuscany, location of a great truffle fair during November, is a name to conjure with. San Miniato is about 45 km from Florence (one and a quarter hours by car) and the time to visit is during October and November when… 
A Tuscan salumi selection as antipasto
The word salumi is a collective term for dried and cured meats such as prosciutto and sausages of the salami family, among others. It’s very similar but not identical in meaning to the French expression charcuterie. Lardo, cured lard, is an exotic type of salumi. A Tuscan salumi selection as antipasto is typical fare in… 
Posted in 
Tags: 
