Decameron author Giovanni Boccaccio’s hometown of Certaldo is set to host the 19th edition of Boccaccesca from October 6 to 8. Celebrating the “art of good living”, traditional Tuscan products and its namesake poet, the festival takes place across upper and lower Certaldo.
Besides spotlighting customary local food favorites such as the Certaldo onion, this edition will focus on edible flowers and their uses in gourmet and home cooking. Numerous themed events are on the program: cooking workshops and shows with varied chefs will feature, along with a presentation of rose-flavored gelato by Vetulio Bondi of the Associazione Gelatieri Artigiani Fiorentini (3.30pm, October 7) and of florally tinged chocolates by Andrea Bianchini of The Food Factory in Fiesole (3.30pm, October 8). Wine lovers will congregate at the Enoteca di Boccaccesca, which this year focuses on exclusively Tuscan wines.
New developments for 2017 include a special “Percorso del Gusto” section: for 5 euro, visitors can purchase a map granting access to three itinerant tasting sessions. The Conferscenti Certaldo will also run a Street Food section anchored in the lower town. Children’s activities, entertainment and games will run throughout the weekend in the “Angolo dei Bambini”, and a marketplace with quality products from around Tuscany and Italy will run daily from 11am.
For the full program, see the website.
