July wine festival in Florence

The week between July 21st and July 23rd is an extremely interesting one for wine lovers. Theretwo wine festivals in two of the most beautiful estates of Florence.

The first one is in the garden of Villa Bardini (Costa San Giorgio 6a) in Florence which starts on July 21st and ends on the 23rd. There will be more than 40 selected wine producers that will “offer” to taste something like 150 different labels: red, white, rosé wines. While you taste different wines you can listen to various cultural talk-shows in different points of the garden. With only one ticket you can taste as much wine as you want and participate in the show. These are only few of the wine producers present in the wine fair: Alepa, Coltibuono, tenute Folonari, il Borro and many others. The fair starts at 5,30pm until 10pm. The ticket costs euro 15,00

Information at :
mail: vinoingiardino@moba.fi.it
tel: 055 – 2008 444 - 055 289020
cell: 366 – 3171834

The second one is called “Mid night summer wine” and it takes place on July 22nd at San Paolo della Croce, at Impruneta. You can taste fabulous wine but listen to good music as well such as jazz or classical myths such as Giuseppe Verdi.

The wine producers are la Montina Franciacorta, Agricoltori del georgrafico, Zonin, cantina Pievevecchia and others. The tasting will have an important sommelier as host, Andrea Gori, vice- European sommelier champion, recently cited on the New York Times.

The wine fairs starts at 7,30pm

Elba Island: hotel and turquoise sea

Elba Island is the biggest island in Tuscany: you can get there by car or by train from Florence, it takes only 2 hours to get to the Ferry Boat that will bring you on the other side in 45 minutes.

The island offers both sandy and rocky beaches and a turquoise sea.
This hotel in Lacona is the ideal location for a relaxing holiday at the seaside in connection with sport and nature. The hotel is located in the middle of a beautiful park, just a stone’s throw from the long sandy beach of Lacona. The hotel features pleasantly furnished bedrooms, many of them recently refurbished, spacious common areas, a 25-meter swimming pool with hydromassage zone and 2 tennis courts. Guests have the possibility to practice different sports such as sailing, snorkeling and underwater diving, windsurf, tennis and cycling. The hotel is also the ideal resort for families, the Mini Club for children is provided and activities are held in the playground within the park and on the beach, where your children will enjoy days of fun.

At Hotel Lacona you can have lots of fun and sport in complete safety for an unforgettable holiday in Tuscany.

Los Angeles Singer-Songwriter perfoming in Florence!

Don’t let the demure face fool you. When judging Los Angeles-based singer-songwriter Jacqueline Becker by her cover, key in instead on that mass of black hair cascading down in an unmanageable frenzy as the best physical allegory of just what this girl’s voice is capable of, because in her case, big hair certainly means big voice. A music degree from Yale and a lifetime of study no doubt form the foundation for her talent, but when Becker sings, it’s easy to forget about the more formal elements of composition in the absolute rush of emotion her music inspires. Perfect pitch, astounding range, and sheer vocal muscle have all combined on what can only be described as an epic scale to lend her voice its uniquely thrilling factor; couple that with her carefully-crafted songs that boast the soul-plucking rhythms of the best kind of jazz, and clever lyrics that impressively succeed at echoing both the spunk and the emotional capacity of their writers, and you’ve got an artist that effortlessly walks the fine line between being a throwback to a better era and someone refreshing and original in her own right. She has the surging power of an Alicia Keyes and the delicate restraint of a Norah Jones, a deft navigation of the balance between might and tenderness.

Acoustic guitar, violin, bass, and various percussion with an incredibly clean and natural voice.
Following the release of her new album, the Los Angeles singer -together with her band from California- will make Florence the base of her Italian tour. Original songs coming from jazz, eclectic pop rhytms and a soul personality with a California flair.
Check her beautiful melodies on her Myspace page!
Jacqueline will be at the Soccer Stadium Franchi (Estate Viola) on July 6th, at Teatro del Sale on July 7th and at the Limonaia di Villa Strozzi on the 13th of July.
See below for all dates and venues of her shows:

* LUGLIO 2010 * JULY 2010 * LUGLIO 2010 * JULY 2010 *
4 Sunday S.Vincenzo, Livorno - Fronte del Porto
[8.00pm & 11.30pm - Piazza del Porto, 2 - rooftop terrace - website]
5 Monday Follonica, Grosseto - Congo Bar
[10.00pm - via Spiaggia di Levante, 17 - beach stage - website]
6 Tuesday Florence - Lady radio showcase & interview
[daytime, broadcasting on Lady Radio and RDF Radio - website]
6 Tuesday Florence - "Franchi" Soccer Stadium / Estate Viola
[10.30pm - Viale M.Fanti / Curva Ferrovia - concert after World Cup semi-final - website]
7 Wednesday Florence - Teatro del Sale
[dinner starting at 7.15pm - Via de' Macci, 111r - acustic show - website]
8 Thursday Rome - Rock City Festival
[opening act Roberto Billi - via Lemonia, Parco degli Acquedotti/Cinecittà - website]
9 Friday Rome - Conte Staccio
[12pm - via Monte Testaccio 65b - website]
10 Saturday Riotorto, Livorno - Nano Verde
[6pm - Parco della Sterpaia, Riotorto - beach stage - website]
11 Sunday *album release private party*
12 Monday La spezia - Loggia dei banchi
[7.00pm - via Mazzolani, 32 - website]
13 Tuesday Florence - ControRadio Interview & showcase
[5.40pm broadcasting on Contro Radio - website]
13 Tuesday Florence - Limonaia di Villa Strozzi
[10pm - Villa Strozzi, via Pisana 77 /@ Polimoda - website]
14 Wednesday London - The Troubadour
[8.15pm - 263-265 Old Brompton Rd, London SW5 9JA - website]
15 Thursday London - Icarus Club
[8.15pm - The Station Hotel: 14 Staplehurst Rd, Hither Green, London SE13 5NB - website]

16 Friday London - Cavendish Arms
[8.00pm - 128 Hartington Rd, SW8 2HJ- website]
17 Saturday London - Club333
[8.15pm - 333 Old Street, Shoreditch, UK EC1V 9LE - website]