Italy's Wine Fountain in Abruzzo

Italy is now the proud owner of the world’s first wine fountain — flowing freely, for all comers, 24 hours a day.

We’re surprised they beat Napa to the punch (which should really have a California zin coursing out of some spigot, somewhere in town), not to mention France, which recently posted traffic signs warning drivers about the hazards of grape pulp on roads. But some Italian came up with the idea first, as they did with the jacuzzi and hydrofoil, so — they win.

We asked ourselves: What should come out of our town’s free fountain?

Berlin, you need beer.

L.A., juice.

S.F., Soylent, if we can get it liquid enough.

Chicago, more beer. But Old Style.

Manhattan, we’re thinking 5-Hour Energy. Or Diet Coke.

If you’d like to visit Italy’s free wine fountain, possibly the greatest marketing invention of modern times, it’s located on the Cammino di San Tommaso, east of Rome, in Abruzzo. It takes inspiration from a similar wine spot installed along the Camino de Santiago; similarly, the Camino is itself a pilgrimage route, for Roman travelers seeking to pray beside the relics of St. Thomas at the cathedral of Ortona.

But you can also go just for the wine.

Meet your guide

Diane Rommel

Diane Rommel has written for The Wall Street Journal, Outside, Marie Claire, Cosmopolitan, Travel + Leisure, Wallpaper and Afar, as well as The Cut, Buzzfeed, Huffington Post and McSweeney’s. She once drove from London to Mongolia, via Siberia.