Our first Italian Supper was our most romantic Supper yet! On a hilltop overlooking Spina, Umbria, we set a secluded table in the dim candlelight of the medieval Castello di Saint’ Apollinaire. We started the evening with welcome cocktails in the courtyard, made with elderflower and olive oil pressed just down the road, as the light slanted low through the trees during golden hour.

The community here is close, deeply intertwined not only with each other, but with the land. The traditions of subsistence farming still feel present, not something of the distant past. You can taste it in the food, often simple farmer’s fare made fresh with whatever ingredients are most available. It’s in the wine too…