Vendemmia delle Donne in Puglia

Tradition is a big deal in Italy, and no place more than with food.  Every weekend there is always a sagre, festival or raccolta somewhere celebrating a particular fruit or legume, and by the beginning of September Italy is all about the vendemmia. From the south upwards, vineyards begin the season’s grape harvest, integrating 21st century technology with centuries-old skills.

Photo credit: Erica Firpo

Even though the days of foot-stomping grapes are long gone, grape harvests still require a delicacy that only human touch can provide and in the case of Puglia wine family Rubino’s Tenuta di Jaddico, just a few miles outside of Brindisi, women-only harvests are celebrated in the single-day Vendemmia delle Donne.

Yes, the harvest is only one day, and a few hours, but in those hours, Tenute Rubino pays homage to a decades-old tradition where teams of women – sisters, mothers, cousins and friends– worked the vineyard rows, gently cutting grappole of Susiamenello while their male counterparts cleaned up around them.

Photo credit: Erica Firpo

No, it wasn’t and isn’t female vs male battle.  A harvest is all about interaction- a chiacchierata (a chat), some singing and maybe an opportunity to flirt. I was told that back in the day, the female-only harvest was also an opportunity for the single girl to eye up the male selection and enjoy a bit of banter, while flanked by her mom and friends.  And if something came about of it, then a good harvest just became a little better.

Think of it as a vintage Tinder-beta, where instead of swiping right and exchanging clever sms, you chitchat and maybe dance a pizzica.

Photo credit: Erica Firpo

Author’s Bio: Erica Firpo is a freelance writer based in Rome and contributing editor of Fathom.  She writes about Italy, its art and culture for publications including Huffington Post, Forbes Travel (correspondent), Travel + Leisure, The Guardian, New York Times Travel and BBC Travel. For a closer peek into her Italy visit her on Instagram, chat her up on Twitter and get into her head on ericafirpo.com and her blog Moscerina.