After four wonderful days in Ortigia, Sicily we traveled onto Zafferana Etnea where we explored the Mount Etna area over the weekend. Mount Etna is an active stratovolcano. It is the tallest active volcano on the European continent. While Mount Etna truly is a must visit we equally enjoyed those late afternoon Sicilian lunches during Spaswinefood's November visit.
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| Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
Arriving in Zafferana Etnea: It must be Lunch Time
We arrived in Zafferana Etnea on a Friday around mid-day. There was no answer at the door to the B& B where we planned to stay; so we decided to walk into town and have lunch.
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| Fountain, Zafferana Etnea © Spaswinefood |
We soon discovered Ristorante il Castello di Bacco on the plaza near the church. We decided to have lunch there.
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| Ristorante il Castello di Bacco, Zafferana Etnea © Spaswinefood |
It was a great lunch except for the house wine ordered. The house wine was passed its time but the waitress happily took it back. We ordered another wine. This time the wine, Terra della Baronia, IGT Sicilia 2006 was a good choice.
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| Terra della Baronia, IGT Sicilia 2006 (Front Label) © Spaswinefood |
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| Terra della Baronia, IGT Sicilia 2006 (Back Label) © Spaswinefood |
For main courses we ordered mushroom pasta.
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| Mushroom Tragliatelle, Ristorante il Castello di Bacco © Spaswinefood |
After an introduction to the local mushrooms it became hard to resist ordering them wherever we dined.
We shared a chocolate dessert.
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| Chocolate Fondant, Ristorante il Castello di Bacco © Spaswinefood |
After lunch we walked back to our B&B to check in.
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| Church, Zafferana Etnea © Spaswinefood |
Touring Mount Etna: It must be Lunch Time
The next day we drove to the top of Mount Etna and explored the area around the volcanic cone.
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| Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
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| Crater, Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
As we drove down from Mount Etna it became foggy. Our November stay in the Zafferana Etnea area was generally overcast. When we drove up the volcano in the mid-morning there were some sunny spots. In the parking area near the top there was good visibility. However, by mid-day, as we drove down the slope of the volcano, it became quite cloudy. That did not deter us from exploring the area on the volcano's slopes.
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| November, Slopes of Mount Etna © Spaswinefood |
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| November, Mount Etna Area © Spaswinefood |
The lower slopes of Mount Etna has fertile volcanic soil, which make it great for agriculture. Throughout the area you will find vineyards and orchards.
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| Countryside, Etna Area © Spaswinefood |
As we drove back down to Zafferana Ethnea we stopped briefly at Hotel Airone.
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| Airone Hotel, Zafferana Etnea © Spaswinefood |
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| Airone Hotel © Spaswinefood |
Later, after exploring the area around Zafferana Etnea, we decided to have lunch at Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge.
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| Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge © Spaswinefood |
We began lunch with a bottle of red wine, Terre della Baronia, IGP Sicilia 2009.
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| Terre della Baronia, IGP Sicilia 2009 (Front Label) © Spaswinefood |
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| Terre della Baronia, IGP Sicilia 2009 (Back Label) © Spaswinefood |
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| Caprese Salad, Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge © Spaswinefood |
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| Mushroom Fettucini, Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge © Spaswinefood |
Yes, caprese salad and pasta with local mushrooms are hard to beat. We also ordered the meat plate special.
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| Meat Plate, Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge © Spaswinefood |
After caprese salad with our main courses it was time for dessert. We decided on chocolate ice cream for dessert.
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| Ice Cream, Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge © Spaswinefood |
Lunch at Ristorante Pizzeria Moulin Rouge was quite good. We also had a great waiter.
After Driving to Messina and Taormina: It must be Lunch Time
Next day we decided to drive to Messina. Before we entered the coastal highway we could not resist taking pictures of Mount Etna. It had a dusting of snow.
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Mount Etna © Spaswinefood
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We drove directly to Messina and stopped in at Taormina on our return. It was fun to drive the coastal highway (A20) to Messina and back.
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| Next Exit, Messina © Spaswinefood |
There are many towns along the route to Messina. Taormina, setting on the hillside of Monte Tauro, overlooking the ocean caught our attention. We decided to explore it a little.
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| Taormina © Spaswinefood |
As we drove the road up the steep hillside, the views below were absolutely amazing.
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| Taormina Harbour © Spaswinefood |
Then as the road became narrower and more widening we reached the top of Monte Tauro.
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| Taormina, Monte Tauro © Spaswinefood |
We so enjoyed driving to Messina and exploring the countryside in the Mount Etna area.
After our road trip we returned to Zafferana Etnea. This time we stopped for a late lunch at Bar del Bosco SRLS.
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| Bar del Bosco SRLS © Spaswinefood |
For lunch that day at Bar del Bosco SRLS it was perfect timing to try a simple red wine.
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| Frasca Vino Rosso, Siclia © Spaswinefood |
For lunch that day at Bar del Bosco SRLS it was perfect timing to try a simple red wine.
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| Bruschetta, Bar del Bosco SRLS © Spaswinefood |
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| Caprese Salad, Bar del Bosco SRLS © Spaswinefood |
For lunch our main plates were:
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| Mushroom Bucatini, Bar del Bosco SRLS © Spaswinefood |
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| Eggplant & Spaghetti, Bar del Bosco SRLS © Spaswinefood |
Sharon
November 2014
Zafferana Etnea
Sicily, Italy
© Spaswinefood
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