The festa
One of the oldest sagre in Italy: it began in 1925 to celebrate the grape harvest and Marino's wine.
For one day this town in the Colli Albani fills up with allegorical floats, period costumes and stalls of grapes and wine. The costumed parade recalls Marcantonio Colonna's return from the battle of Lepanto in 1571: ladies, knights and extras file past in sixteenth-century dress.
The moment everyone waits for is the fountain “miracle”: in the afternoon, in piazza Matteotti, white wine instead of water comes out of the Fontana dei Quattro Mori and people drink from glasses brought from home. All around, through every street in the centre, you eat porchetta, buy grapes from the local vineyards and taste Marino DOC.
It is a village festival, not a ticketed event: entry is free and you pay only for what you consume at the stalls.
Programme
These are the times of recent editions: the sequence is always the same, the minutes can change.
- Sat 3 · eveningStalls open and music on the squareStalls of grapes, wine and Castelli produce along corso Trieste. The centre is already closed to traffic.
- Sunday · morningGrape market and showGrowers show off their prize bunches; band concerts and the cellars of the old town open up.
- Sunday · early afternoonCostumed paradeMore than three hundred extras in sixteenth-century costume: from piazza Garibaldi along the corso to the fountain square.
- Sunday · afternoonThe fountains that run wineThe moment of the festival: wine comes out of the Fontana dei Quattro Mori. Bring a glass and get there at least an hour early.
- Sunday · eveningFloat parade and closingThe allegorical floats of the contrade, then music until late.
Getting there
Route on Google MapsThe train is the right call: on the day of the sagra the centre is closed and the car parks fill up early.
What to know before you go
Four things the people who live here take for granted.
The parade and the fountain fill the square: arrive mid-morning and you find a spot, arrive at 3pm and you see the back of other people's heads.
At the fountain you drink from your own: a glass or a bottle. The stalls also sell the sagra's souvenir wine glass.
Many stalls take cash only. Village prices: a glass of Marino DOC around €2–3, a porchetta roll €5–6.
It is a family festival, but during the parade the crowd is dense and the centre is uphill. Mornings are better, and a child carrier beats a pushchair.
Around Marino
You are in the Colli Albani: volcanic lakes, fraschette and other villages minutes away.
Nearby, on Twip
The sagra is free. If you want to step inside a cellar or a Castelli kitchen, you book those on Twip.
Frequently asked questions about the festival
The things people ask us before they leave.
Is there an entrance fee?
No. The sagra is a village festival in the streets of the centre: you pay only for what you consume at the stalls and in the cellars.
Does it go ahead in the rain?
Yes, unless there is a weather alert. The parade can be brought forward or shortened: check the Comune's channel that morning.
Is the fountain wine really free?
Yes, while it lasts. Bring your glass from home and get there early: the square fills up an hour before.
Can I bring my dog?
Yes, but during the parade there are crowds and a lot of noise: the morning or the evening is better.
Last train to Rome?
On Sundays the FL4 regional trains towards Termini run until late, roughly one an hour. Check the day's timetable before you set off.