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Zagarolo Elite Wine Tasting Team – Backpacking Europe
Onward to Zagarolo
With the Delayed Flight madness and Coconut Guy in the past, it was time to enjoy the last day in Barcelona before heading off to Zagarolo. I only had about half a day before taking the transit to the airport, so it was decided to head out to the beach and take it easy. On the way out, a stop was made at a well-known rock climbing facility called Sharma Climbing. The place had a full service bar and was packed full of enthusiastic climbers working on their sequences.
After a short walk to the beach, I found an area to sit down and have lunch. The spot overlooked almost the entire beachfront of Nova Icaria and Platja del Bogatell. The volleyball courts made for some great people watching, boats were taking people parasailing, and the sun was shining. Life was good. It was a great way to recoup some energy before Zagarolo.
Following lunch, I packed up and walked the beach line to the subway going to the airport. I can’t go without saying that, once again, flights were delayed. At this point, delays honestly seemed normal. Nevertheless, I eventually landed in Rome, picked up the rental (another free upgrade!) and drove Eastward to Zagarolo around midnight.
A True Local Experience
First off, where the heck is Zagarolo, and why would you go there? Great questions. Zagarolo is a very small town about 45 minutes east of Rome. For those interested in history, the town center has medieval origins and some well-designed architecture. The place gives off much more of an genuine Italian feel with a weekly farmers market, regional wine tasting and plenty of small shops to check out.
When in Rome...eh... Zagarolo
Try out the Grandcaffè bakery on the main street and browse through the farmers market (I believe it's only on Sundays!) on the east side of town. Two words. Truffle sausage.
The place is a perfect distance from Rome to still day-trip in, but far enough away to be separated from city life. I can’t speak for taking the train, but with a rental car, the drive is definitely manageable.
Wiki Hostel in Zagarolo
Although there are plenty of reasons for staying at Zagarolo, my main motive was actually an interest in the hostel: WIki Hostel. I’ve stayed at plenty of hostels, and this one was one of my favorites. It wasn’t anything elaborate, the rooms were standard, and prices were fair. The reason it was so enjoyable was because of the people it brought in.
Wiki Hostel offered plenty of tours during the stay, so I had to take advantage of it. Almost everyone at the hostel went on them, so it was a perfect way of walking around town and getting to know everyone. During the tour, we made stops at the town center, a Catholic church, some shops and the farmers market.
I was only at Wiki Hostel for 2 days, but during that time I made friends who had some awesome experiences to share with our group. Hell, we even formed the Zagarolo Elite Wine Tasting Team in a day…
Let the Wine Flow - Zagarolo Wine Expo
Alright, it’s the moment we’ve all been waiting for… Wine… Zagarolo Wine Expo. Before going any further, let me mention that this doozy of a day cost me €7. Yes, your eyes do not deceive you.
Disclaimer
If there is an opposite of a wine connoisseur, that is I. So any insights will be very surface level.
As we made our way to the entrance, I was handed a bib and a glass. Let me tell you, the fanciness levels were off the charts at this point. I’ll be the first to admit, wine tastings are not normally in my wheelhouse, so I probably looked like an idiot. Anyways, we entered into the building, which I believe was converted from a church or convent. The ceilings were full of murals and stained glass.
Mural fun fact
I couldn't help but notice the alarming amount of mermaids on the ceiling. Apparently many of the murals were painted this way as an act of partial censorship. The more you know...
At this point, our tour guide gave us a brief introduction of what to do, and let us go on our way. Groups started to split off, and I got together with a few people – Maya, Jesse, and Thea. With glasses in hand, we formed the Elite Wine Tasting Team. Oh, I forgot to mention – this entire annual wine thing was just by chance, too. I don’t think anyone knew it was going on during our stay.
Let the Rankings Begin
Our ranking system was impeccable. Red or White? What did it taste like? How many stars would you give it? Looking at my notebook while writing this, I can only laugh. Some of the descriptions just don’t add up. “Turpentine?”, and “Earth flowers, with soy sauce.” I’m guessing these were scribbled down after about 20 tastings in. So profound, Mike.
Speaking of the number of tastings, there was much more variety than I imaged for a small town. I underestimated you, Zagarolo. It was pretty interesting listening to the sellers talk about their wine and then tasting the differences. I also underestimated the number of English-speaking Italians who’d be at this small town expo.
After we all had our rounds, we met up in the courtyard to go over our results and vouch for our top picks. Apparently mine was a white wine, Ribolla Gialla. Likewise, the others picked similar ones. Overall, the tasting was a unique experience, especially for the location.
However, the fun wasn’t over yet. While in the courtyard, a cooking station was set up and started whippin’ out some raviolis. But these weren’t ordinary raviolis. They were horse raviolis, people. And all feelings aside on this matter, they were excellent.
To Rome!
Once we were all back at the hostel, we had a family dinner. This was followed by more wine, because why not. My sister and her boyfriend, Alex (Smitty) also arrived that night to squad up for the rest of the Italian journey.
In the morning, we had a quick breakfast and lounged around outside with everyone else before saying goodbye. Though it was a quick stop in Zagarolo, it was time well spent among new friends.
Not long after, we were in the little Mercedes hatchback on our way to Rome, before ultimately heading to my personal favorite region of the trip: Tuscany!
Michael Lakus
IT professional, athlete, musician, ponderer of many things... Born and raised in Florida, I began traveling internationally after college. I created this site primarily to remind myself of where I've been and to share my experiences on traveling with a quirky, stress-free, travel attitude.
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