There are so many different things that can cause you to fall in love with a country—and it’s not always the things you expect. The obvious things include activities such as visiting iconic museums, observing wondrous views, or seeing your favorite statue. But then there are cultural things you don’t expect that take you for a loop, and wine-drinking culture in Italy is one of them.
Not Your Typical Bar Scene
If you’re from America, or even the UK, you typically imagine a bar as a loud, raucous scene. You imagine football “bros” or soccer hooligans screaming at the television, chugging down beers and slopping some of it down their front. But in Italy, it’s not quite like that.
Don’t get us wrong. There are certainly bars like that in Italy, but there are also other bars that offer a whole different experience—casual wine bars. These are bars that aren’t loud, but quiet and respectful. These are bars where wine is the only thing that gets ordered. But instead of people sitting down at separate fancy tables as you would normally associate with wine-drinking, people are just standing quietly, wine in hand, lounging around as one would in a normal bar.
It’s truly a unique experience that you have to see to understand, but it can be somewhat life-changing and eye-opening. It’s a revelation of cultural difference that’s quite refreshing when you see it, and it’s definitely something you should look for when you go to Italy.
