|
Overlooking
Mount Amiata, farm holidays at Le Macchie assure a sojourn
in contact with nature in a protected and uncontaminated
oasis. The farm house was built in the 1600’s
and comprises three spacious and charming apartments
as well as the owners quarters when they are in residence.
They share a beautiful pool with breath taking unobstructed
panoramic views of Monte Amiata and the Crete Senesi.
 For years the owners have dedicated
them selves to the land with both respect and passion,
cultivating wheat and producing their own prize winning
olive oil d.o.p.,
In fact, for centuries this farmhouse with it’s
terracotta floors and thick chestnut beams, has been
a part of a land where the stretches of wheat, the olive
groves, genista, oaks, the clay earth of the Siena,
Tuscany area, and Mount Amiata together establish a
unique natural context.
The owners have carefully furnished
the property with wrought iron lamps, linen cloths from
Monticchiello, antique Tuscan furniture and Tuscan "arte
povera" (poor art). The terracotta floors, the
restoration of the wooden beams and the great original
stone fireplace, a testimony to the past, welcome each
guest in a warm and comfortable atmosphere.
ACCOMODATION: Click on the name of each apartment for more information:
- Moraiolo (sleeps 2);
- Leccino (sleeps 6);
- Oriolo (sleeps 6).
THE
GARDEN AND SURROUNDING ESTATE:  The garden is simple and rustic but
well maintained, surrounded by massive oak trees hundreds
of years old. There are extensive rose beds, fig trees,
lavender and rosemary. The house it’s self is
covered with a magnificent Wild American creeper that
turns bright red in the Autumn. From one huge tree hangs
a delightful swing and there are wide spreading lawns.
It is fully illuminated for nighttimes enjoyment.
The pool is shared by all tenants
and well furnished. It has wonderful views and is 12
x 6 meters with a Jacuzzi 2m x 2m.
Walking about the property one can
find coves, the so called "calanchi" and "biancane",
characteristic erosive and argillaceous forms imbued
with shell fossils, a memory of the marine environment
of the past.
With in the surrounding fields and
wild areas one can find wormwood, goat's beard, cretaceous,
artemisia, wild fennel, and diverse gramineae such as
maritime  barley, thin rye-grass, and bent rye grass,
species typical of the coast and very rare for this
altitudinous part of Tuscany but the essential nourishment
of the local sheep from whose milk the traditional sheep's
milk cheese of Pienza is produced.
This
clay earth is remembered by "Grand Tour" travellers,
from Michel de Montaigne to Charles Dickens, who were
particularly attracted to the rugged and changing terrain,
the unusual flora and it’s resulting ornithological
(bird-watching) aspects.
The park and the reserve, in fact,
preserve the geomorphologic characteristics of the traditional
rural landscape, recognized as indispensable for numerous
species of birds, a large part of which are in danger
of extinction today. The "calanchi" and "biancane"
are the natural habitats for the harrier minor, which,
make up a good number of the nesting couples found in
the Tuscany area, and for other birds of prey such as
the rare Lanner and harrier eagle. In addition, the
wheat fields near to the farmhouse are regularly visited
by various types of lark such as the woodlark, crested
lark, and calandra lark.
The estate surrounding the farmhouse
is also an area of repopulation for pheasants that are
periodically controlled and  protected by the personnel
of the natural Park of Val d'Orcia.
OLIVE
OIL PRODUCTION AND HISTORY AT LE MACCHIE: The olive is one of the main protagonists
of the "Val d'Orcia" landscape. It has been
since the remote past, well before the Etruscans who
had cultivated it in the VII the century A.D..
At a later date, it was distributed
and traded by the Romans who constructed "l'arca
olearia", a sort of pouch for olive oil, in Rome
where importing colleagues negotiated price and quantity.
Nowadays, the olive represents a naturalistic
alimentary heritage in all the Mediterranean and in
a particular way, in Italy. The Agriturismo Le Macchie
has dedicated itself for years with fervour to the cultivation
of olives with the utmost environmental respect, producing
the extra virgin olive oil "L'olio Extravergine
Le Macchie Terre di Siena D.O.P.".
 The temperate climate, the scarce
precipitation, and the hilly and strongly calcareous
land of our farmhouse constitute an optimal microclimate
for olives. Olive picking, done manually by "brucatura
con cesto" (piercing with a basket), occurs at
the end of October with the darkening of the drupe surface,
when the olive, which is still yellow-green begins to
become spotted with red dots.It
is in this phase in fact that the drupe contains a greater
percentage of oil, less water content and more antioxidants.
The olives are carefully selected,
placed in perforated crates that permit the air to circulate,
are brought to the oil press within 24 hours of being
picked.
Here the olives are put through a
process of defoliation and washing, in this way eliminating
eventual residues and impurities, then they are cold
pressed by means of "sistema a ciclo continuo"
(continuous cycle system).
The oil, obtained in this way, exhibits
a  very low acidity and has an intense greenish color
with light yellow reflexes. To ones nose, it offers
itself broadly and persistently with a pleasant medium-intense
yield in which the familiar foliage of unripe almond
and artichoke leaves intertwine. To ones mouth, it is
rich, unctuous, with its sweet, sour, and spicy traits,
in perfect equilibrium with a broad aroma, which is
compound, enveloping, and of great persistence.
Extremely
typical, robust but at the same time harmonious, the
Extravergine Olive Oil Le Macchie gives a loyal and
expressive image of our land and of its different varieties
of olives "Oriolo" "Moraiolo" and
"Leccino", fruit of the passion that we dedicate
to our land.
LOCATION: The closest airport is Florence and
Rome airport is about 2 ¾ hours by car.
Florence an hour and 20 minutes by car, Arezzo 45 minutes
and Siena one hour.
NEAR BY: Le Macchie is a few minutes from
the principle medieval  villages of Val d'Orcia, such
as Monticchiello, and its Castello dei Cavalieri Templari,
home of the renowed teatro povero; Pienza, the Renaissance
dream of Pio II; Montepulciano, hometown of the distinguished
humanist "Il Poliziano"; Montalcino and its
exceptional wines; Bagno Vignoni, developed around an
ancient Roman thermal pool; Chiusi Etruscan city of
the VIII century A.C.; and Radicofani, with its fortress
which dominates the valley.
Val
d'Orcia, rich in subsoil sulfur waters, hosts important
and celebrated thermal centers which offer esthetic
and healing treatments. A small distance away from LeMacchie
the thermal centers of Montepulciano, San Casciano ai
Bagni, Chianciano, Bagno Vignoni and Bagni San Filippo,
are a perfect anti stress treatment for the care of
both body and soul.
You can also find horse riding, golf,
hot air ballooning, bicycle hire, Tennis and hiking
in the immediate vicinity.
HISTORY: The farm house was built in the 1600’s
and originally belonged to the noble family Borghesi
of Siena, Tuscany. It has always been a working farm
housing the contadini (peasants) who were bound to the
noble owners, their animals and agricultural storage.
|
