As Jon drove us back that afternoon along the narrow roads from Gioiella to the valley bottom so we could join the main road to Citta I suddenly had the colour yellow on my mind. Was it because I'd been thinking of the importance of the bright yellow found on many of the tin glaze pots made at Deruta I'd been thinking about earlier, or something more immediate? - and then I remembered. The theme of the festival being celebrated in Citta this particular weekend was saffron! I knew saffron was harvested from the stamens of crocus flowers as I'd watched a programme on British TV about the historic town of Saffron Walden in Essex recently, where crocus bulb cultivation had been economically important round there in times past, but I had always associated crocuses with spring and not autumn. The wonderful displays of spring crocuses in purple and yellow seen on the green grass areas of the Stray in Harrogate, Yorkshire, came in to my mind - another recollection of my upbringing in that beautiful part of England. But what were we going to find in Citta della Pieve? - I was intrigued. As we approached our little town up the steep hill road suddenly I saw a poster on the side of the road advertising the festival - it had been dark the previous evening so we hadn't seen in then. It was headed "ZAFFERIAMO" - 24,25,26 Ottobre - Centro Storico - so we knew where to head next.
I picked up a copy of the leaflet advertising the festival and detailing the events in the entrance hall of the Palazzo Corgna in the main square of Citta. A listing of all the happenings filling the three day programme was contained inside - everything from cookery demonstrations to art exhibitions and even tours of the crocus fields outside the town. The last event on the Sunday (which we wouldn't be able to go to) was a guided visit through the town to look at the saffron hues in Renaissance painter Perugino's Citta Della Pieve works found in different churches and chapels. Downstairs at the palazzo was a display of fine local embroidery done on textiles dyed with saffron. We started our saffron experience with a display of contemporary works of art on the first floor of the Palazzo in its fresco decorated rooms and every painting, done by a variety of Umbrian artists, was themed on the yellow colour of saffron. This imaginative and thought provoking display of landscapes, still lifes, figurative and abstract works was an interesting start to our saffron sojourn. Walking along the main street the purple colours of the crocus had been used to theme window displays in various shops and the local gelateria was offering saffron flavoured ice cream! But where to next? - the market hall and outside square opposite it seemed the best choice as this is where most of the saffron festival activities were focussed.
Saffron is one of the most ancient of spices and its been traded and used by man for over four millenia. It's thought to have developed as a native plant of Asia Minor and was then cultivated there for centuries. Over time its been used not only as a colouring agent and dye for fabrics, but also as a medicine and flavouring agent in cooking. Cleopatra is known to have tinted her skin with saffron and the Greeks used it as an aphrodisiac. In the Middle Ages saffron was used to produce brightly coloured foods for elaborate banquets and it was a well know symbol of wealth amongst the nobility in Italy. It's a 13th century Dominican monk who's thought to have introduced it to Italy from Spain and since then its been grown successfully as a commercial plant in different parts of the country, particularly in Tuscany and Umbria; Florence became an international trading centre for saffron and the spice developed as one of the most costly by weight. Now unknown in the wild the latin name of the plant is Crocus sativas and its purple flowers develop from bulbs planted in early September in this part of the world; they flower in the middle of October. Saffron is harvested by removing the three tiny deep orange stamens in each flower and these must be hand picked on a daily basis so they are selected just when they are ripe and at their most colourful. All are then dried to make the pure form of saffron which is usable in the different ways mentioned. Today its been estimated that to produce one pound or 450g of saffron its necessary to harvest the stamens from between 50,000 and 75,000 flowers. It takes forty hours of picking to harvest 150 thousand flowers. I don't think I'll be applying for a seasonal job harvesting saffron!
In medicinal use there is evidence to suggest saffron may be important in the treatment of depression and possibly in connection with certain eye conditions and some cancers. In food its traditionally been used to add colour and as a flavouring in European, Turkish, Arabian and Asian dishes and it's also been used in the making of liquers and confectionary.
Down the main street in the second of the town's principal squares the saffron festival was in full swing when we arrived. Outside the market hall a couple of young chefs demonstrated the making of various pasta dishes to an engaged crowd of seated onlookers, but we decided to go in to the hall to see the "Zafferano...e non solo" - or "saffron... and not only" market.
All of the stalls were displaying and selling wares made with saffron so it was possible to sample local olive oil, honeys, cheeses, gelatins, breads, fruitcakes, sugared almonds, liquers and grappa all made with saffron and the tables were decorated with the violet crocus petals of the saffron crocus. It was a pleasure to mingle with locals and visitors and to listen to some of the animated conversations about the food and other products being displayed and sold. One local stall holder, who we'd met before - Jon bought some locally made artisan products from her last Christmas, explained where the nearby saffron fields were and tried to persuade us to go on one of the walks; we must make sure we can do it next time round
We ended our saffron day with a fixed price three course dinner (only 29 euros) at the nearby Vannucci Hotel where all the dishes were saffron themed. I had a golden coloured saffron based soup, followed by salmon fishcakes with saffron batterand saffron rice and of course a saffron gelato for dessert! And the taste......... well saffron tastes to me a little bit like eating dried hay with a slightly sweet note. I am not sure I would want to sample it every day. Overall the saffron festival provided another example of the local community coming up with an event celebrating a tiny dimension of the local economy in a significant and enjoyable way - for locals and visitors alike.
THE CITTA DELLA PIEVE SAFFRON FESTIVAL IS HELD EACH YEAR IN THE MIDDLE OF OCTOBER AND LASTS THREE DAYS. DETAILS ARE PUBLISHED ON THE TOWN'S WEB SITE.
Saffron is one of the most ancient of spices and its been traded and used by man for over four millenia. It's thought to have developed as a native plant of Asia Minor and was then cultivated there for centuries. Over time its been used not only as a colouring agent and dye for fabrics, but also as a medicine and flavouring agent in cooking. Cleopatra is known to have tinted her skin with saffron and the Greeks used it as an aphrodisiac. In the Middle Ages saffron was used to produce brightly coloured foods for elaborate banquets and it was a well know symbol of wealth amongst the nobility in Italy. It's a 13th century Dominican monk who's thought to have introduced it to Italy from Spain and since then its been grown successfully as a commercial plant in different parts of the country, particularly in Tuscany and Umbria; Florence became an international trading centre for saffron and the spice developed as one of the most costly by weight. Now unknown in the wild the latin name of the plant is Crocus sativas and its purple flowers develop from bulbs planted in early September in this part of the world; they flower in the middle of October. Saffron is harvested by removing the three tiny deep orange stamens in each flower and these must be hand picked on a daily basis so they are selected just when they are ripe and at their most colourful. All are then dried to make the pure form of saffron which is usable in the different ways mentioned. Today its been estimated that to produce one pound or 450g of saffron its necessary to harvest the stamens from between 50,000 and 75,000 flowers. It takes forty hours of picking to harvest 150 thousand flowers. I don't think I'll be applying for a seasonal job harvesting saffron!
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| THE YELLOW STAMENS ARE VISIBLE INSIDE PURPLE CROCUS FLOWERS |
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| STAMENS ARE DRIED AFTER PICKING TO PRODUCE THE PURE SAFFRON |
Down the main street in the second of the town's principal squares the saffron festival was in full swing when we arrived. Outside the market hall a couple of young chefs demonstrated the making of various pasta dishes to an engaged crowd of seated onlookers, but we decided to go in to the hall to see the "Zafferano...e non solo" - or "saffron... and not only" market.
All of the stalls were displaying and selling wares made with saffron so it was possible to sample local olive oil, honeys, cheeses, gelatins, breads, fruitcakes, sugared almonds, liquers and grappa all made with saffron and the tables were decorated with the violet crocus petals of the saffron crocus. It was a pleasure to mingle with locals and visitors and to listen to some of the animated conversations about the food and other products being displayed and sold. One local stall holder, who we'd met before - Jon bought some locally made artisan products from her last Christmas, explained where the nearby saffron fields were and tried to persuade us to go on one of the walks; we must make sure we can do it next time round
We ended our saffron day with a fixed price three course dinner (only 29 euros) at the nearby Vannucci Hotel where all the dishes were saffron themed. I had a golden coloured saffron based soup, followed by salmon fishcakes with saffron batterand saffron rice and of course a saffron gelato for dessert! And the taste......... well saffron tastes to me a little bit like eating dried hay with a slightly sweet note. I am not sure I would want to sample it every day. Overall the saffron festival provided another example of the local community coming up with an event celebrating a tiny dimension of the local economy in a significant and enjoyable way - for locals and visitors alike.
THE CITTA DELLA PIEVE SAFFRON FESTIVAL IS HELD EACH YEAR IN THE MIDDLE OF OCTOBER AND LASTS THREE DAYS. DETAILS ARE PUBLISHED ON THE TOWN'S WEB SITE.
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