MANDURIA

Situated on the “Murge Tarantine”, Manduria enjoys of a Mediterranean climate, that means warm summer, long and dry, mitigated by the south wind of scirocco and particularly mild winters.
Mnaduria is on among the gratest and active towns in the province of Taranto and owes its prosperity and importance to the fact to be situated at the confluence of the communication routes among the territories of Taranto, Lecce and Brindisi.
It draws lifeblood from a fertile and wide territory, occupied by “masserie” that are farms devoted to agropastoral activity.
Manduria sets in a district cultivated to vineyards and olive-groves that produce oils and appreciated wines, like the famous one “Primitivo di Manduria” D.O.C.
The typical vegetation of the territory of Manduria is the “Macchia Mediterranea”. It is constituted by evergreen bushes and by trees with a scarce demand of water. The wood is composed from arboreal, shrubby, and herbaceous plants but also by mushrooms, musks and lichens.

Historical outlines
Manduria is considered one of the most important towns of the Messapic culture, so Much significant that the E.U. allocated a financing for the realization of the Archaeological Park.
The first inhabiteb area of Madnuria had to be situated near via per Lecce, where recently an early-archaic necropolis has been discovered (VII century b.C.), deprived of fortifactions. Only about 500 b.C.Manduria was provided with the inner wall of fortification, for a circumference of about 3300m. This second wall dates back to the period of the wars between Taranto and Messapic populations, it is a refined wall that was built such as reinforcement and restoration of the first one. The wide necropolis arranged all around the ancient boundaries is another testimony that Manduria preserves of that period: different hundred of graves with a rectangular pit gathered in groups in relationship to the family affiliations.

Manduria and its churches
Manduria is considered sacred for the great number of churches and convents of good artistic level.
The most important religious monuments are: SS.Rosario (1687)with the stately Baroque façade and the harmony of its forms, S.Giuseppe that has a more ancient origin, Church of the Spirito Santo (with the annex Convento delle Servite), Church of the Immacolata (XVII century), Church of the Scuole Pie (1741), Church of San Francesco rebuilt in the early XVII century, the Chiesa Madre is certainly one of the more successful examples of religious architecture of the ‘500 in Apulia.

SAN PIETRO IN BEVAGNA
The legend narrates that the ship that taked St. Peter Apostle to rome called at this coast for the restocking of water and, in the plentiful source of Chidro river, St. Peter probably baptized the first Christians in Italy.
Covered by the surface vegetation, the spring crater of the Chidro (name of the source, that probably derives from hydro, water) is deep up to 12 mt. and it allows spectacular immersions for the transparency of its waters.
The village has developed around the tower-church, the only example of this type of architectural fusion among all the coastal towers (more than 80) strewn along the coast of Salento. The tower has an unsual starry plant (with 4 points). The church is of the ‘700, the tower of the ‘500, and both rise above a crypt of anterior epoch (probably Byzantine), sacred testimony of the place in which St. Peter (in the period following to the death of Jesus Christ) baptized the first followers of the Christian religion.

The Primitivo di Manduria doc wine
Red as the blood, it leaves the sign on the lips of whom taste sit, attracted by the deep velvety color and by the unmistakable, clear perfume, and its purple reflexes. “the Primitivo is strong, wild, wine that evokes pleasant feelings and hets your heart and your soul. The origin of the selection of the plant and the definition of “primitive” is attributed to a clergyman, “Don Francesco Filippo Indelicati”: he noticed that among the vines that he used to cultivate, there was a plant that reached maturation before the other-ones, it gave a particularly savory and sweet grape and it could be harvested at the end of august. It must be dunk with small sips, little by little with parsimony, tasting its rich and aromatic bouquet. Classic meditation wine, it is excellent to exalt various dishes like roasts as well as game and it reaches the top on sauces and spicy foods. Aged, it finds its perfect position with “scajuézzuli” and “cupeta” confectionery specialties with almonds and with every other desserts.

The Oil
The oil, gift of the olive, green gold of our region, is at the base of every dish with its fruity taste, essential to make rich and savory every dish, giving taste and fragrance to the humbles foods. With its golden drops, it can make delicious and special from the simple “bruschetta” of bread to the most elaborate “frisedda”.

Typical fresh pasta
In the category of the typical fresh pasta we can count the “pizzareddi” with meat sauce that is the typical Sunday dish and the tasty “lajana” proper to complete and make savory beans and chickpeas soups, but it is also used to prepare the “tria cu llu baccalà” mixed with dried cod that is traditional dish of Christmas time.