Bertinoro, the terrace of Romagna

Bertinoro di Romagna is famous for its good wine and the gentle hills that mark the surrounding landscape. Of noble medieval origins, the village stands on a small hill covered with vineyards from which it is possible to enjoy a magnificent view over the plain below until reaching the waters of the Adriatic Sea on the horizon. For this reason Bertinoro is nicknamed "The Balcony of Romagna", as well as being known as the "City of Wine and Hospitality". The town is also part of the Authentic Villages of Italy association. Historical notes Around the origin of the name Bertinoro there are two stories that are lost in history that are worth telling. The first one tells that Galla Placidia, daughter of the Emperor Theodosius, after tasting a wine from this area from a simple earthenware cup, pronounced the expression "You are not worthy of such a crude goblet, wine, but of drinking it in gold". A second one, instead, indicates the name of the place to derive from the Latin genitive britannorum, to remember the British monks who had lived in this area for a long time. Since the early Middle Ages, this village was provided with a defensive fortification, the splendid Rocca, that overlooks the whole valley. At that time the influence of the city of Ravenna reached as far as these lands. From the Hapsburgs to the control of the Church in 1177, maintained until the Unification of Italy. he small village of Bertinoro has several interesting locations to visit. You can start from the beautiful fortress, built around the year 1000, which in 1302 even hosted the poet Dante Alighieri, as Carducci recalls in his ode "La Chiesa di Polenta". The medieval heart of the village, however, is Palazzo Ordelaffi, an ancient municipal building dating back to 1306, which hosts the Sala del Popolo and the Sala della Fama. Not to be missed is the Cathedral of Bertinoro, dedicated to Saint Catherine of Alexandria, patron saint of the village, built with three naves in Bramante style. In the heart of the town is one of the main monuments: the Colonna delle Anella, also known as the Hospitality Column. Built at the behest of Guido del Duca and Arrigo Mainardi, to put an end to the constant clashes between the noble families of the place, the column had 12 rings, each of which corresponded to a family. When a pilgrim arrived in Bertinoro and tied his stick or his horse to one of the rings, he was hosted by the family it represented.