Cantinando

A village that reopens its cellars

Cantinando is the food and wine event that kicks off the year in Filettino, a small town in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, nestled high in the heart of the Monti Simbruini Regional Natural Park. In the first days of January, when the mountains are in the depths of winter, the medieval historic center comes alive with a formula as simple as it is effective: the old cellars carved beneath the houses, closed and silent for the rest of the year, are reopened, cleaned, and decorated to welcome visitors.

There are about twenty of them, scattered along the alleys and stairways of the old town. Each one is entrusted to an association, a group of friends, or a local business, which sets up a temporary tavern. The result is a staged route where you climb up and down the village, step through a small door, taste something, have a glass, and head off to the next cellar. Each stop, as it has been written, is a taste of identity.

What to eat

The cuisine on offer is that of the Lazio Apennines—substantial and no-frills, designed to be enjoyed in the cold while standing. Among the staples that return every year are:

• polenta in its most traditional versions;
• arrosticini cooked over the embers;
• hot soups and broths;
• various sandwiches with local cured meats and products;
• numerous other typical local products;
• selected wines and hot drinks to accompany the journey.

Costis Ardua and the Christmas program

The organization is handled by the Costis Ardua Cultural Association, founded in 2014 by a group of local youths with the goal of making the village attractive once again. Alongside Cantinando, the association has grown the Potato Festival over the years, the other signature event of Filettino held in autumn. Cantinando is part of the Christmas in Filettino program and effectively marks its conclusion: it falls right around Epiphany, when the town is still full of vacationers and families who have come up to the mountains for the winter holidays.

A recurring success

The event now has a well-established history: the eighth edition took place on January 6, 2024, and the ninth on Saturday, January 4, 2025, starting in the late afternoon. On both occasions, local reports described a village packed with tourists and food enthusiasts, with the twenty cellars bustling until late. In January 2026, Cantinando returned to animate the heart of the mountain village, confirming itself as the event that best captures the relationship between Filettino, its mountains, and its table.

Why it is worth the trip

Cantinando is neither a fair nor a standard town festival: it is a village celebration that uses the very architecture of the town as a path. Walking from cellar to cellar means entering the homes of Filettino, seeing spaces that are normally invisible, and meeting those who live there. For those arriving from Rome or the Ciociaria plains, it is also an opportunity to discover a corner of the Monti Simbruini in its winter attire, amidst snow, forests, and one of the best-preserved historic centers in this stretch of the Apennines.