Lucignano d’Asso is a hamlet located about 25 miles west of Montepulciano. The paved two lane road closest to the hamlet is Provincial Route 14 which is slightly more than a mile to the west. Lucignano d’Asso is located where three “strada bianca” come together. (Strada bianca are “white roads” or what we would probably call graded dirt roads.)
The area is agricultural. The area is also scenic. Three hundred people lived in the hamlet in the 1950s; the population has shrunk to about 50 people today.
There is larger town named Lucignano to the east. This hamlet with a similar name is near the Torrente d’Asso, a creek that fills when the weather is rainy and drains to the west. It must have been dry when we visited. We couldn’t find the Torrente d’Asso.
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| The dirt road to Lucignano begins |
The only other commercial activity in the hamlet is an alimentari, a tiny convenience grocery store, something like a bodega in a big city or a Seven-Eleven along the highway in the suburbs. An alimentari, however, sells only food and wine, never gasoline, cigarettes, lottery tickets, or windshield washer fluid.
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| The road turns right |
The alimentari in Lucignano d’Asso was mentioned in A Culinary Traveller in Tuscany: Exploring and Eating off the Beaten Track, a book we picked up some time ago. We were interested in what we read so we drove down the narrow twisting dirt road toward the town. Dirt roads in Tuscany always seem to be white, we suppose, because the top soil has been stripped away from the road and the clay underneath has been exposed. The clay is white and very dusty when it’s dry and very sloppy when wet.
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| The road turns left |
We found the alimentari easily just past the stone lion that was observing those few people who pass by on the main (and only) street. Inside we greeted the proprietor and surveyed the little store. Canned goods, some fresh fruit and vegetables, and an Etruscan tomb in the back where she had stored soft drinks, wine, and beer. There was no sense of irony in the plan for storing the drinks. The drinks had to be stored somewhere.
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| Guarding the town |
As the book had described to us, there was a display case with cheeses and cured meats. The cheeses and meats were all produced by local people, by farmers in the area. The alimentari offered a selection of sliced cheeses and meats for lunch which was the reason why we had sought out the place.
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| The alimentari |
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| "What would you like?" |
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| Etruscan tomb in back |
We took seats outside in a building that is open on the sides, a sort of pergola built out of stone and brick appointed with potted plants.
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| The dining room outside |
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| Geraniums |
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| The valley beyond |
There were lovely views across the valley.
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| Waiting for lunch |
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| Lunch is served in the pergola |
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| Admiring lunch |
After a wait of ten minutes or so the proprietor arrived with our lunch which included two “summer ripe” tomatoes, some thick slices of crusty fresh bread, some fruity olive oil, wine and water. All this was served with plastic plates and plastic silverware.
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| Two other diners |
The meal cost 28 Euro or about $40 in today’s weakling dollars.
We weren't the only ones enjoying this lovely lunch on a warm spring day in a hamlet in quiet corner of Tuscany.
