In Vino, Veritas

LP

The Wine Windows of Florence

By Sassy Pellizzari

Firenze, or Florence, Italy has an extremely special place in my heart. It was the city I moved to for “one year”… and stayed for 14 years. It was where I studied and worked for many years, where I met my husband Paolo, where our son John grew up, and now where we go when we are looking for wine inspiration. We still have our home in Tuscany (we try to visit as much as possible) and it is still a huge part of our lives.

One of the things Florence is renowned for is the beauty of its architecture and the history surrounding it. The culture is truly intertwined in all aspects of itself, even visions of wine found dotted across the old historical palaces in the city. A relatively new and unique way to visit the incredible historical center of Florence is to follow the path of le bucchette del vino, literally translated to “little wine holes.”

“Wine holes” are small windows built into the outer walls of palaces and villas in the city center of Florence originally used as point of sales for wine flasks (fiasco). The history of these wine portals dates back to 1559 when Cosimo de’ Medici declared that nobile families could sell their wine directly to consumers from their wine cellars in their palaces. This was a way for the wealthy to sell surplus wine to working-class buyers, and avoid taxes.

Clients walking down the street could knock at the wooden window, which was constructed in the facade of the palace, to indicate that they would like to purchase wine. A server would take their empty bottle and the payment, fill up the bottle from their cellar, and hand it to the customer through the window on the street.

The wine portals were not just about generating wine sales for the wealthy; they were also used for beneficiary purposes. Nobile families would at times also leave food or a jug of wine for those who needed it.

For convenience, these windows were constructed on the ground floor of the palaces, most accessible to the people on the street but also to the wine cellars. These unique portals were usually a different stone pattern in the façade of the building, often decorated with small

wooden doors and openings just large enough to pass through a flask or a glass of wine, about 12 inches high and 8 inches wide. They were usually imprinted with the indication vendita del vino (wine sales).

Interestingly, wine windows may have played a role in preventing the spread of the bubonic plague, and today, thanks to COVID, these curious windows have found a new purpose. In 2020, early in the pandemic when tourists couldn’t enter museums or buildings, wine windows became a walking tour of the city. Many of the windows reopened as a sales point, distributing wine, Aperol Spritz, cappucino or even gelato, while guaranteeing social distancing and avoiding direct contact with clients.

There are approximately 180 wine windows in Florence, with the majority of them in the downtown city center, but there are also around 30 outside the city walls, plus many more in the metropolitan area. Considering the number of clients during those historical times, there was no shortage of availability.

It is truly another testament to the lasting ingenious innovation and creativity that was found so widely during the Renaissance in Florence. During my time there, living in the extraordinary city often felt like living in a fairy tale. Now that they have reopened 16th century windows where you can grab a glass of wine from a palace and walk on your way, I believe it truly is heaven on earth. PL

Sassy Pellizzari lived in Italy for more than 13 years, where she developed a passion for and knowledge of Italian wines. She and her husband, Paolo, are the owners of Bacco Selections, a Pinehurst-based company specializing in fine wine importing and distributing.

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