Bolgheri

Bolgheri, an ancient village in the heart of the Maremma, is inextricably linked to the verses of one of the most beloved Italian poets: Giosuè Carducci. His family, in fact, lived here for about a decade, from 1838, in conditions of great poverty.
Carducci dedicated one of his most famous poems, “Davanti a San Guido”, to the cypress avenue that leads to the town, and the first lines say: «I cipressi che a Bólgheri alti e schietti van da San Guido in duplice filar, quasi in corsa giganti giovinett mi balzarono incontro e mi guardar».
In the Bolgheri cemetery, immersed in nature and in total tranquility, lies the tomb of grandmother Lucia, to whom Carducci was very close. Being a part of the municipality of Castagneto Carducci, in the province of Livorno, Bolgheri rises just under ten kilometers from the Costa degli Etruschi, the stretch of the Livorno coast that preserves several necropolises.
The name “Bolgheri” appeared for the first time in 1075 inside a papal bull, in which, however, the village was called “Sala del Duca Allone”. Like many other towns in Tuscany, Bolgheri also fell under the dominion of Florence in 1406.

In the eighteenth century Bolgheri experienced a period of growth and prosperity, thanks to the administration of the counts of Gherardesca (whose coat of arms is still visible on the walls of the village ) who decided to provide the inhabitants with an aqueduct and to devote themselves to the development of the agricultural sector. Bolgheri, over the centuries until today, has become one of the cornerstones of Tuscan wine production. The village, in fact, is famous for its wines, such as Cabernet and Merlot, and there is the Bolgheri DOC Consortium, which brings together about thirty wineries and guarantees the excellence of these products.

As we said above, in Bolgheri you arrive along the Viale dei Cipressi (also called Viale San Guido), a typical country road accompanied by a long row of cypress trees, about 2540, many of which date back to the nineteenth century, and they extend for almost five kilometers. Along the way, you will meet the Oratory of San Guido, the Church of Sant’Antonio, the Church of San Sebastiano and an obelisk dedicated to Carducci. At the end of the avenue, there is the symbol of the village: the Bolgheri Castle, with its entrance walls and its imposing tower.