Pedlar Project - World Beer Cycling Tour

A bit late on this one: last week I was riding up and down and around Tuscany. Weather was incredibly pleasant. Visited Il Macchione, an awesome producer of Vino Nobile di Montepulciano. Simone couldn’t hide his good memories of having lived in Ceará, Brazil 18 years ago, as he told me in very good portuguese. But he came back home and decided to dedicate his best efforts to make great wine. Being a hilly region, tuscan fortified cities were built on the hilltops. Siena for e...xample is another gem that keeps the splendour of the 13th-15th centuries. Moving on through the Chianti region, stop for a glass of red and then Florence. Previous times I was more on a rush to see things. This time, just walked around contemplating beauty built as a city, the materialisation of Renaissance ideals, a place where economic and political power from humanistic rulers attracted the most extraordinary tuscan minds like Da Vinci, Michelangelo, Botticelli, Galileo. The latter giving name to the the museum of history of science. Galileo’s instruments, experiments and objects of study are there, as well as his middle finger. Still very useful against conspiracy theorists.
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Useless to say that you can find good food anywhere in Italy. But Umbria stands out. Hidden in the valleys of the Appennines of central Italy there’s excellent charcuterie, sheep’s cheese, olive oil and wine. Couldn’t resist carrying my own stock of pecorino and boar salami. Tasted powerful Sagrantino di Montefalco at Cantina Fongoli, a natural wine maker. In Assisi a visit to Saint Francis Basilica to witness the beauty of the work of Giotto; in Perugia I happened to get there as they’re celebrating Eurochocolate festival. A beer watching the sunset at Trasimeno lake and off to Tuscany.

This one is a sad story. It’s about Amatrice. The place known for the famous “amatriciana” dish was considered one of the most beautiful old towns in Italy, until the night of 24th August 2016 when an earthquake destroyed it completely. I was decided to go back and visit it, since I kept a good memory of it from April 2012, the first stage of my first cycling trip. This time I’ve found a town in ruins, as they’re still taking away the debris. The army blocked access to it. S...ome temporary housing has been built, as well as a new food area to host some restaurants: that’s where I’ve found Daniele, owner of Trattoria Ma-Tru. I remember meeting him and eating at his trattoria 6 years ago. He’s lost all his family except his niece and is trying to start again. In fact the new Ma-trù is called “Rinascita Ma-trù”, the rebirth. Despite his efforts to promote Amatrice, he says things move slow around there and it’s going to take a while to rebuild the town. Wishing all the best to Daniele and his restaurant, I highly recommend to pay him a visit if you ever find yourself in the area!
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I’ll tell you what these 10 days in Rome meant: a brief revival of some unforgettable times I’ve lived in this city. The world turns and we roll around it, yet some places leave such a mark on us that we’re inevitably pulled back. Riding around, memories pop up at every familiar corner. Great to see again so many good friends! Either colleagues from Johnny’s Off License and Druid’s Rock, football team mates from River and of course Valdurz. With Valdurz it was a such a special moment: I knew they were organizing a friendly game for the occasion but I didn’t expect to see almost 30 players turning up!

This is where it all began in April 2012... my first multi day trip on a bike. Today I’ll redo that first stage, Rome to Amatrice

Rolling around Rome, on via Nomentana I was surprised with the brand new cycling path, something I never believed they would finally build. That’s the avenue I used to commute everyday when I lived here. As usual, once it’s built it’s left over. Some parts are already covered in leaves and dirt, but not all of it: thanks to Salomon’s effort it can be used as a proper cycling path for everyday commuters. He left this note: “Dear Sirs, I’d like to integrate honestly with your city without asking for charity. From today I’ll keep the roads clean. All I ask is a 50 cent contribution for my work. Cleaning materials are welcome” Cheers to this man’s good will and smile, may he be successful!

First, arrived in Rome on Via Appia Antica: 2000 year old roman stone roads are not the average cycling cobblestones. Then, met my dad. What else can I ask? A beer, so we went for a few in town, of course at Johnny's Off License and at EurHop Festival. There I met again a whole lot of good friends from this trip. Great times

Ended up spending a day making homemade cider in a nice little town called Sant’Agata de’ Goti! The fertile volcanic soil of the region around the Vesuvius is excellent to grow a variety of things, including the “mela annurca”, a delicious sweet and tart apple that Ivan is using for his cider. Now it’s time to go to Rome. It’s a place I lived some amazing years and I can’t wait to be back. It gets even better than that: I’m going to meet Master Marco Falcone (also known as dad) who I haven’t seen since Christmas. And we’re going to EurHop, one of the best beer festivals in the world. Just 100 km to go. Via Appia, take me to the eternal city.

Naples and the Vesuvius have had an intense relationship for thousands of years. It’s sometimes said that neapolitan people live for the moment because at any time the volcano could take away all they have. That’s one of the theories that Francesco, my host in Naples explained. Before getting there, I managed to cycled up Mount Vesuvius, getting to the square at 1000 m and then walking to the border of the crater. The fumes coming from the hole and the hot soil prove that the... monster is not dead, it’s just sleeping. On Camped near the top and then cycled down to chaotic Naples, a city so full of history and culture that it would take me years to explore it properly. I was really lucky to be hosted by a local cyclist who is so passionate about his city that he decided to take me and another cyclist, Joyce, for a saturday cultural walk around the city, an unforgettable experience worthy of a city like Naples. From teaching the unwritten rules of traffic, how to cross the road like a neapolitan, reciting poems from Totò in the middle of quartiere della Sanità, eating babà, taralli ‘nzogna e pepe, pizza, visiting the Capodimonte museum, medieval castles, roman ruins, greek ruins and many contemporary ruins. We had dinner with his family listening to bossa nova (he could sing all João Gilberto songs) and exchanged stories from our rides around the world. This is the proof of how great the cycling community can be.
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Italia was the name given by the greeks to some areas located on the coast of Calabria and Campania, part of their colonies in southern italy known as Magna Grecia. The SS18 Tirrena Inferiore is the road that follows this coast, where at some points the mountains dive straight into the sea and going over the Cilento mountains. Diverting west to the Amalfi coast, an even narrower road is used by thousands of people to what they imagined would be a nice holiday destination, tha...t turns out to be hell. Heavy traffic and mass tourism completely ruin the scenery. Tour buses picking and dropping people to take a few pictures. On the other side of the peninsula there’s the also famous Sorrento, where I went to visit Birrificio Sorrento, a brewery using typical ingredients of the region in their beers: lemons, oranges, walnuts, grapes. Giuseppe welcomed me at the brewery with an excellent pairing of his beers and local cheese and charcuterie (fior di latte, provolone del monaco, capocollo). With the right food pairing he believes is the best way for his beers to be appreciated.
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Left behind monsters like Scilla, Cariddi and the Shark of the Messina Strait (better known as Vincenzo Nibali) to make my way up the tirrenian coast of Calabria. Towns like Tropea and Pizzo appear on top of cliffs facing the sea. At some point I turned inland, over the mountains to visit a little town called Celico. The reason is that’s where my family’s italian ancestors came from. I turned up, started randomly chatting to people and immediately realized that a lot of the f...olks in town are Falcone as well. There’s the Falcone brothers who make wine, the Falcone who makes furniture, the other one who makes preserves, the other one has a hotel. They seemed to be very curious about this weird story that a cousin from Brazil cycled to visit their little town hidden in the mountains. Back to the coast and to the heat: it’s still summer here and I’m enjoying it while I can. The last few km in Calabria took me through San Nicola Arcella, Grotta dell’Arco Magno, Praia a Mare... the water is so clear it’s unbelievable. . #calabria #tropea #pizzo #grottadellarcomagno #celico #falcone #worldtour #pedlarproject #cycletouring
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Just cycled the Strada Statale 113 - Settentrionale Sicula, from Palermo to Messina - 260 km on the coast, ending over the hills looking over the Messina Strait and Calabria. In Palermo I realized I’m in the South. A concept that in Italy is generally associated with people’s warmth, disregard for rules, corruption, chaotic traffic, breathtaking scenery, paradise beaches and a lot of rubbish everywhere. On the coastal road I frequently stopped for a swim in crystal clear wate...r, like in Cefalù and Capo d’Orlando. In Milazzo, great to see good friend Giulia again and her family (that I visited once 8 years ago). We were chatting and wondering why people throw rubbish out of their car window. The morning after I was leaving and couldn’t find my cycling shorts. We blamed the poor dog. About 3 km away I couldn’t believe: found them on the roadside. It probably fell off the bike the day before near her house, someone took it, found it too disgusting and threw it away again off the car window... Now in Calabria, on the tirrenian coast, going North!
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Riding into flaming sunsets in Sardinia. Signs that the summer is finished. Rainy days are coming but I’m still avoiding them somehow. With wind on my back and the pressure to take the only ferry of the week to Sicily, I wrapped up Sardinia in only 3 days. I know it’s quick but what can I do... off road at night to find a camp spot with a sea view in Santa Teresa Gallura; showing up at P3 Brewing in Sassari for a visit and ending up having (too) many beers with them; taking the Alghero-Bosa road for one of the best coastal rides of the trip; arriving at sunset at Spiaggia Maimoni after 145 km and going for a swim; “flying” into Cagliari with time for a glass of wine and enjoying the view from the ferry...

Italia eccomi qua, ti voglio pedalare tutta! Questi sono i miei piani. Amici, birrai, ciclisti, chiunque abbia suggerimenti/divano libero/conosce qualcuno che conosce qualcuno, ditemi! Sono in Sardegna e poi salto in Sicilia. Dopo il giretto per le isole, sbarco in Calabria per salutare la terra dei miei antenati. Su per la costa. Poi le strade mi portano a Roma, perché è la città più bella al mondo e perché voglio arrivare in tempo per Eurhop a metà Ottobre! Poi verso nord f...inché arriva il freddo vero. Percorso ancora da decidere. Suggerimenti più o meno sul tracciato sono benvenuti!
Italy, here I am, I want to cycle the whole of you. These are my plans. Friends, brewers, cyclists, anyone who has suggestions/spare couch/knows someone who knows someone please let me know! I’m in Sardinia and then going to Sicily. After the tour around the islands, landing in Calabria to visit the land of my ancestors. Then up by the coast. All the roads lead to Rome because it’s the most beautiful city in the world, and I want to get there in time for Eurhop, so mid-October! Then up north until it gets really cold. Route still to be decided. Suggestions near this route are welcome!
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After visiting the impressive Birrificio Baladin in Piemonte, I cycled to the coast and took the ferry from Savona to Bastia in Corsica. 4 days in the island, from north to south, right through the middle. It’s all mountains, you either go up or down, that’s it. The main roads are narrow and busy, the cars hardly leave you any space. I took small roads as much as possible: they’re even narrower, but the pleasure is immense: climbs up to 1300 m that zigzag down the mountain, ...surrounded by forests, leading to some forgotten villages. Waterfalls are the best option for a shower and they’re everywhere. In Bonifacio, the last goodbye to France, the country I cycled the most so far in this trip. 37 départements in 80 days, learned a new language, faced winter, spring and summer. And most important, was welcomed by amazing people for which I’m so grateful. Au revoir!
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September in Piemonte: mushrooms popping everywhere, vineyards getting ready for harvest. First, a weekend in Torino, out for aperitivo with my hosts Cecilia and Vito and the first contact (since a long time) with this country’s love for eating and drinking well. Further south into the hilly region of Langhe, the proof of how the relationship between Homo sapiens and Vitis vinifera have influenced the landscape and the culture. That’s why I came here: to speak to producers of... wines like Barolo, Barbaresco, Barbera and try to understand the context, the terroir, the techniques, their opinions. Oh, and to taste the wines. Speaking to Claudio Alario is like speaking to an encyclopedia. He‘s got 50 years of experience working in the vineyard and in winemaking. Producers like Enzo Boglietti and Ettore Germano were also very friendly and open to answer questions from a curious brewer. Didn’t get to work on the harvest as I wanted, didn’t know a little detail: Nebbiolo is the latest to be harvested, when the grapes are more concentrated and nights are colder, waking up under “nebbia”, the morning mist.
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Alpine challenge done. For the love of mountains, which are there to be climbed. 960 km and 23913 m going up. It was unforgettable. 18 mountain passes, where for centuries shepherds still guide their cows and sheep to graze the alpine pastures and make the most delicious cheese. Passes that became legendary conquests of cycling heroes. Some of these roads were the most difficult and dangerous point of crossing for pilgrims, armies, merchants. The Col du Grand Saint Bernard wa...s crossed by Napoleon on a donkey and 40000 soldiers behind him... and who knows how many more brave people since roman times. Imagine reaching the Col de l’Iseran, the highest pass of the Alps, under rain, cold and no energy left... After Mont Cenis it was all downhill to Torino. Picked some funghi porcini in the forest to cook for dinner. Can’t believe I’m finally in Italy!
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Today cycled over Col du Petit Saint Bernard (2188m) and Col de l’Iseran (2770m). Yesterday Col du Grand Saint Bernard (2473m). Total ascent around 6600m in two days. Pushing body and mind to the limit.