I admit it, I’m infatuated with the Maremma. So much in fact that, sometimes, I feel like I bore people.
Still that doesn’t make me any less committed to sharing off-the-beaten-track experiences like the one I had in San Martino sul Fiora on Easter Monday.
San Martino sul Fiora is a super small town in the Comune di Manciano where I live. It’s definitely off the tourist radar. The sort of place you go if you want to see what the Maremma is like for the locals.
Every year, the town hosts its very famous Sagra del Agnello or Lamb Festival. The festival started in the ’60s and come rain or shine, it always pulls a crowd because the food is out of this world and the people are even nicer.
This year, inclement weather moved the festivities to the old wine cellars under the magnificent, almost-too-dramatically-striking-for-a-small-town church.
Naturally lamb was on the menu. Approximately 77 lambs over the course of the three day festival to be precise. But among all the deliciousness, there was one delicacy that caught my eye.
It’s called budellini di agnello and it’s basically the lower stomach section and intestines of the lamb cooked in a really thick and simple tomato sauce. You have to be the first in line at this festival to try it because it always sells out fast and it’s a real delicacy that you won’t find in too many other places.
As I was learning how the dish is made, the chief chef and lifelong San Martinese Demio asked me if I wanted to see the machine they use to clean the intestines.
Forget grossed out. I was intrigued. The machine is small and unassuming and Demio here is its inventor. As the story goes, a rich paesani was throwing out an old washing machine. Inspired Demio takes it and pierces a line of dead straight holes along the body of the machine, which is effectively a huge plastic egg.
The intestines go into the egg and are turned round and round by hand while a constant stream of water flows into the tub through a hose on the side. To give you an idea, the machine looks a lot like the one they use to spin the numbers in in bingo.
Before the intestines go for a spin, they’re opened with another tool invented by Demio. It’s basically a sharp pen blade hidden inside a metal tube with an ingenious handle that sits under the chair for stability.
A couple of handfuls of salt are added to improve the cleaning process. People are always complimenting Demio on just how clean his intestines are, although the town’s nonne still refuse to use the machine, preferring to stick to the old ways.
I’ll admit, I stood there, my mouth open in admiration. To go to such lengths as to invent a machine especially for a small town festival. You just don’t get that sort of blind affection in Florence or Siena. This was country Tuscan in a moment with all the passion and love every local has for the place they call home.
This machine has changed the face of the Sagra del Agnello. Nothing makes the locals here happier than sharing their signature dish with hundreds of visitors and now they can.
As for the festival itself. When San Martino celebrates, there is nothing touristy about it. I drooled over fried lamb and homemade tortelli with at least three quarters of the town beside me. The atmosphere was genuine and congenial. And even though San Martino sul Fiora has none of the great beauty of Tuscany’s Renaissance cities, I still wanted to live there. The locals are welcoming, familiar and their hospitality knows no bounds.
If you want see San Martino’s famous Sagra del Agnello yourself, don’t miss their summer edition. Details to come!