Gervasi Vineyard

We have been hearing about a place that some refer to as "Hidden Italy."  I know you are thinking, really.........in Ohio?

Needless to say, this beautiful place called, Gervasi Vineyard did not disappoint. It was everything we hoped it would be and more!  With Tuscan inspired Italian architecture, pristine landscaping, and breathtaking views.  Not to mention the food and drinks were delish!

Upon entering the Gervasi gates, I could not stop saying, "This place is beautiful." As I repeatedly picked my jaw off the ground, it was hard to believe we were in Canton, Ohio. It felt like we were somewhere else in the world.

We started our day off by strolling on brick sidewalks throughout the grounds.  The Tuscan inspired Italian architecture was simply stunning.

On-site, there are several restaurants. We started at the Piazza, which is an outdoor patio/cafe with the yummiest pizza.  We ordered the "Rosa Maria" pizza...I mean, it wouldn't have been right if we didn't.  Ha. The Piazza is a counter service restaurant. There are no waitresses.  It also has bocce ball courts and cornhole/bags game stationed to play. In the evenings they have live music with a fire pit and the scene is super relaxing and fun. 

After a few glasses of wine and pizza. It was time to head to the Crush House to meet for our winery tour. On Saturdays they give free winery tours, however, we opted to pay $20 a person for a more extended winery tour with the history of the land of Gervasi along with a wine pairing with mini bites at the end of the tour. This tour lasted about 50 minutes. 

Following our tour and tasting, we checked into our villa. We stayed in the Portofino Villa.  During check in there was a mix up with the room we had originally reserved. We were supposed to have a king room and instead received a double queen room. The customer service was outstanding as we were then issued a free nights stay to return to Gervasi. ( okay, okay, we will take the free night.  ha ha....with pleasure!)

When you enter the villa there is a common area that is shared amongst four other rooms. The common area has a dining table and chairs, couch, fireplace, a microwave, unlimited bottled water, juice, soda, coffee, and a private patio.   

We stayed in room 201.  The room had a very rustic, old-world Europian feel, decorated with a combination of stone, iron, wood, and marble. The room has tile floors throughout that heat up in the winter months, a gas fireplace, a heated towel rack in the bathroom, and plush robes and slippers. We were also given a bottle of wine as an anniversary gift.

Next, we walked to The Bistro for dinner.  I recommend making reservations prior to your stay. The Bistro restaurant is a refurbished farmhouse that is purely elegant inside.  Spiral iron staircases, fireplaces, chandeliers, and rich wooden flooring. We were seated downstairs, in the cellar.  The room we dined in had floor to ceiling stone and a cozy fireplace...oh, so romantic.  The Italian food was outstanding, reasonably priced with huge portions. 

After eating dinner, we found a cozy chair next to the water and enjoyed people watching and the busy scene around us.  There were several weddings going on and you could hear the live music at the Piazza. There were people everywhere on this beautiful evening.

Upon checking in, you are asked to pick your breakfast, which is included in your stay. It is then delivered to your room in the morning. It arrived in this rustic, wooden box.  It was filled with a fruit plate, croissants, yogurt parfait, chocolate cream, and a meat and egg frittata. 

We learned that they are in the process of building a distillery and boutique hotel on the grounds. Gervasi Vineyard is quite young and was only established in 2009. I'm pretty confident that this secret "Hidden Italy" will be in business for many many years to come. It is the perfect destination for any celebration or to just get away and forget where you are.

For more detailed information about Gervasi, including video tours of the property, dining, villas, events, etc, click here.   I would carefully read about which days the restaurants are open.  This would definitely affect your stay.  Spring to fall months would be the best, in my opinion, to get the full experience. 

Thanks for reading along.
Salute!
Rose

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