Almenno San Bartolomeo is located at the mouth of the Imagna Valley, 20′ from Bergamo and an hour from Milan.
It lies mainly on the plain among meadows and woods, within the Romanesque Park, formerly called “Lemine.”
The area offers an evocative itinerary among architectural beauties of Romanesque art: places to discover on foot or by bicycle, including guided hikes.
There are many places not to be missed.
To begin with, here is the Rotunda of St. Tome, o San Tomè as it is more generally known: a treasure of Romanesque architecture located outside the village in the midst of magnificent meadows and known not only for its ancient origins but also for the events and details that link it to Templar history.
And then the parish church of St. Bartholomew of Tremozia, proving that the village also has its own jewels.
Originating in the 15th century, if not older, the church became a parish church in 1520 with the papal bull of Leo X and experienced a stylistic update from the same year; in 1562 it was also visited by St. Charles Borromeo, a testament to its importance.
There is also no shortage of museums, such as the Tino Sana Carpenter Museum, a former apprentice carpenter turned big businessman with his own firm (founded in 1964) specializing in furniture for large cruise ships, restaurants, and luxury hotels.
The three floors of the museum originate from a simple tool shed, a room that evolved to tell the a rte of the carpenter’s craft through its spaces, tools and specializations: chairmaker, model maker, wheelwright, inlayer, cooper, luthier.
All knowledge that has come down to us through tradition and is recognized today as a high-profile cultural heritage.
Finally, here is the Parietti Furnace Museum, an important 19th-century factory salvaged from a recent restoration, for which contemporary architectural solutions were adopted.
Here, from 1835 to 1960, the Parietti family produced roofing tiles and bricks, using material extracted from nearby quarries.
Almenno San Bartolomeo is part of the Imagna Valley and, therefore, many excellent food and wine products typical of the valley can be enjoyed here.
Among the strengths definitely stand out the cheeses (special mention goes to the stracchino cheese), cured meats and game.
Among the cured meats, not to be missed are the salami, cotechini, bacon, hams, salamelle, and local loin.
What about traditional dishes?
There are casonsei or casoncelli from Bergamo, flavored with macaroons, raisins, pear and lemon zest; the polenta, the emblem of the Orobica table, the food that has fed generations of Bergamasks.
Grapes, berries (the Albenza raspberry is typical), honey and, of course, the wine: Almenno is to all intents and purposes part of the production area of the Valcalepio DOC, an excellent wine that in its red version, with its intense black cherry aroma and dry flavor, pairs perfectly with local cheeses and cured meats.
Almenno San Bartolomeo is part of the Orange Flag Villages, a recognition of tourist-environmental quality awarded by the Italian Touring Club (TCI) to small inland Italian municipalities (maximum 15,000 inhabitants) that stand out for excellence and quality hospitality.
WHY ORANGE FLAG TOURING CLUB
“This location is distinguished by the presence of numerous services and for the value of its historical and cultural elements, all of which are accessible and in a good state of maintenance, as well as being properly enhanced by an excellent tourist information service, in which the role played by the information point stands out.
Also worth mentioning. The quality of local handicraft production, particularly that of wood, to which a museum is also dedicated.” Elsa, TCI ghost visitor