Aosta. Christmas Days in Good Company

By Connie

With the arrival of Christmas days Aosta prepares itself to  warmly welcome thousands of tourists, curious, and local inhabitants.

August arch

Walking through the colorful and lighted streets in downtown 
...you reach Piazza Caveri,  a  nice corner of the city transformed, for the occasion,  in a mountain village that houses  a large and picturesque Christmas market,  called Marché Vert Noël.



There we can find just everything: local food, wine, all kinds of handworks, objects of yesteryear, gift thoughts, 




 Nordic inspirations, art objects and antiques, soaps and candles, traditional sweets and special chocolate, curiosities and tradition.




Immagine yourself getting lost for a few hours,  in a village of lights and colors,  waiting for Christmas in good company.
VIN BRULE’ Mulled wine 
The mulled wine (French word meaning burnt wine) is a hot drink made ​​with red wine and fragrant spices.   Typical of mountain areas, the mulled wine is used to warm up but also to increase the energy during the cold winter days.  In Valle d'Aosta is also considered a good remedy for colds.
Here,in winter, people uses to gather in the warm local village, sipping a cup of mulled wine with friends.
   Ingredients: 1 liter and a half of red wine 3 cinnamon sticks 250 grams of sugar 10 cloves 2 organic oranges and untreated 1 lemon 1 apple 1 pinch of nutmeg
Procedure: Wash the oranges and lemons, cut the rind, being careful not to cut even the white part (too bitter for the mulled wine). Wash apples, remove core and cut it into thin rounds. Put the wine into a saucepan with the cinnamon sticks, sugar, cloves, sliced ​​apple, citrus peel and a pinch of nutmeg. Stir with a wooden spoon for a few minutes before lighting the fire, then simmer the mixture for about 5 minutes stirring constantly, until sugar dissolved. Now comes the difficult time: a flame close to the surface of the wine so as to evaporate the alcohol. Be careful because the wine will immediately fire and the flames will rise blue, but after a few moments will be gone and you can put out the fire. Wait a minute, then pour the hot wine into cups and serve. You can filter the mulled wine, or leave it, it all depends on your preferences.