Beginning a trip with local wines is my favourite way to get to know a place. Doing so at 20,000ft? Magnificent luxury. On board a little prop plane from Gatwick to the Italian city of Bolzano, airline staff plied us with hot drinks, snacks and a delicious Alto Adige pinot bianco – a warmness I quickly learned was typical of South Tyrol.
This region is famous for its proximity to the Dolomites: charismatic mountains with silhouettes as familiar to me as the faces of celebrities. Thousands of people travel to South Tyrol for a glimpse of their towering beauty every year, and some are even brave enough to climb to their summits, or use their steep slopes for adrenaline-fuelled downhill pursuits.
