Carezza

We finally made it to Italy. But we went to Austria first. From Samnaun there are only two roads. Staying in Switzerland involves driving through some very small tunnels. A larger vehicle, like Baloo, needs to drive down the other side of the valley in Austria. At the bottom of the valley you can immediately turn west and go back into Switzerland. Or you can continue south on a well-made, modern main road some ten kilometers to Italy. The only problem with the route Italy are the ubiquitous Austrian 7.5t weight limit signs. We risked it  and a short while later arrived at the border to Italy where, somewhat to my surprise, we got stopped by the police. Not the Austrian police, who were nowhere to be seen, these guys were Italian. They checked the vehicle documents, my driving license and our passports. Fortunately everything was in order and a few minutes later we were on our way. We finally made it to Italy.

A day later we were in the Dolomites. This is a fantastic area. 18 steep, rocky peaks rising to over 3,000m, crisscrossed by deep, narrow picturesque valleys. Vertical walls, bare rock, narrow winding roads and postcard villages. It is also home to one of the largest ski areas in the world. A network of lifts and pistes collectively referred to as Dolomiti Superski.

Last year, while we were parked in Samnaun, we made friends with Carston and Silke, who were parked next to us in their remarkable motorhome with a Porche in the back. They gave us some really good pointers for parking and skiing in the Dolomites. Thank you! Our first stop was Carezza. Small village, small ski area, very pretty. Ideal for us to hang out for a few days. The skiing was good in that the pistes were well prepared and there were some interesting places to visit. However, in general there is not a lot of snow here. Not as much as you would hope for mid-February. So off-piste there is not really any skiing at all. None the less, we had a few excellent days, saw the sights and enjoyed the location.

Our final task was to look out some Legrein wine. Thanks for the suggestion Max. Legrein is a red wine grape variety local to this area. Apparently the wine is rarely exported so you will seldom find it elsewhere. Wikipedia tells me that it is becoming increasingly popular in Australia. It also tells me that Legrein produces wines with high acidity that are congenial and straightforward. Deliciously plummy, earthy and chewy, dark and full-bodied but not heavy, with a pronounced minerally edge. I agree – although I might have struggled over the description. We have been trying wine from several producers. It is reasonably priced and really nice. Think I may go and try another glass just now. Cheers.