Photos taken
fromAnton
Renborg’s
Noticesde
laCorse
,
publishedby
Filigraneson
23June
filigranes.
com, anton
renborg.se
ThesedaysCorsicanwinescompetewith
thebestofyoungBordeauxandBurgundy.
Patrimonio,predominantlypressed from the
Niellucciograpeandgrown in theNebbio
on thesouth-westernbaseofCapCorse, isa
sophisticated,elegant,dryandherbywine.
And theOriu, fromTorracia in thesouth-
eastandpressed ingreaterpercentage from
theVermentiu, isawonderful, full-bodied
whitewithhintsofcitrus,cherryandprune.
But thereareother,deliciouswines, too,
from theAjaccio,Calvi,Sartèneandeastern
coastal regions.And, ifsweetwinesareyour
preference, lookno further thanaglass
ofMuscatduCapCorse from the island’s
northernpeninsula; it isperfectwith the
soft,white
brocciu
cheese.
Trekkingandcyclingarepopularhere,
too.TheGR20, a long-distance trail that
runs fromCalenzana, in thenorth-west,
across themountains toConca, in the
south-east, isa test foreven thekeenest
hiker, and theair in themountainsaround
LevieandZonza isrestorativeandheavily
perfumedwith thearbutus, juniper,myrtle
androsemaryof the
maquis
shrubland.
Touring the island isa favouritepastime,
thoughrentingacarcanbeexpensive.But
it’sworth it if itmeansyouget todiscover
prettymountainvillagesandsip froma
rose-shapedglassofCapCorseoracool
bottleofPietra, thechestnut-flavouredbeer.
Somedivide the island into twodistinct
halves, asseparatedby themountains:
Di ladaiMonti
as it isknown inCorsu,or
Au-delà-des-Monts
inFrench, to thesouth
andsouth-west, and
DiquadaiMonti
,or
En-deçà-des-Monts
, to thenorthandnorth-
east.While I spentmy teenagedays in the
morepastoral south, thenorth is thebusier,
due to itsproximity to themore industrial
northernhalfof Italyand itscloser links
to theFrenchmainland.There ismuch
agricultureand fertile land in theregion,
and thegrovesof theBalagne, thegardenof
Corsica, arerenowned for theirolives.
Forme, though, thechance tosit
beneath theplane trees in theHauteVilleof
Bonifacioduring the
veillée
(evening) isall
anyreasonablemancanwish for.
Mazzeri, LoveandDeath inLightand
Shadow–ANovel ofCorsica
,byPeter
Crawley, ispublished inpaperbackand
ebookbyMatador
peter-crawley.com
Norwegianflies toCorsica,Athensand
Sicily.Bookflights,ahotelandarental car
atnorwegian.com
Inspiring
islands
Spetses magic
In 1951, Britishwriter
JohnFowles, then25,
moved toGreek island
Spetses – about two
hoursbyboat from
Athens – to teach
English. Hemet hiswife
Elizabeth there– she
wasmarried to another
teacher – andwas so
struckby the island’s
atmosphere, he set his
first novel,
TheMagus
,
there. Itwaspublished
in 1965 andmade into
afilm starringMichael
Caine three years later.
Sicilian crime
ItalianAndreaCamilleri’s
20novels featuring
Inspector Salvo
Montalbanoare set in
Sicily,witha special
emphasison thecuisine.
They’vebeenmade intoa
popular TV seriesfilmed
largely in thecityof
Ragusa (
above
).
Capturing
Cephalonia
Britishwriter Louis
deBernières’
Captain
Corelli’sMandolin
– set
inwar-timeCephalonia–
proved sucha sensation
the inevitablefilm
followed, starringNicolas
CageandPenélopeCruz,
drawing tourists to the
Greek island.
O. FANTUZ/SIME/4CORNERS, AWL-IMAGES.COM
092\
n
