town surrounded by stone walls with prominent Baroque gates leading to piazzas and narrow, winding streets. Piazza Roma is the largest square in the old town, with a green space in the centre of a largely triangular grass pattern, facing the 17th-century Palazzo Ducale. Gastronomy Martina Franca DOC The comune of Martina Franca produces a white Denominazione di origine controllata (DOC) Italian wine that can be made in a still or sparkling Spumante style. The wine has a tendency not to age well, often turning from a light white color to a darker amber color and losing its fresh fruit flavors after only 3 to 4 years in the bottle. All grapes destined for DOC wine production needing to be harvested to a yield no greater than 13 tonnes/ha. The wine is made predominantly (50-65%) from Verdeca and Bianco d'Alessano which can make between 45-40% of the blend. Additional grapes are permitted up to a maximum of 5% including Bombino bianco, Fiano and Malvasia Toscana. The finished wine must attain a minimum alcohol level of 11% in order to be labelled with the Martina Franca DOC designation. Sports The town's football team is the A.S. Martina Franca 1947, which are currently plays in Lega Pro. Its home ground is the Gian Domenico Tursi Stadium. The Formula One driver Antonio Giovinazzi was born in Martina Franca. The local futsal club is the LCF Martina. It was founded in 2009 and its home ground is the PalaWojtyla. Transport Martina Franca railway station in an important junction point between the lines Bari–Martina–Taranto and Martina–Lecce, both operated by the Ferrovie del Sud Est (FSE). A minor station on the line to Taranto, Martina Franca Colonne Grassi, is located in the southwestern suburb. Another minor stop, San Paolo, serves the homonym frazione. References in popular culture In the novel Artemis Fowl by Eoin Colfer, Martina Franca is the setting of a troll attack. Personalities Giuseppe Aprile (1732–1813), composer and castrato Pietro Carbotti, Venerable Domenico Carella (1721–1813), painter Donato Carrisi (born 1973), thriller writer Gioconda de Vito (1907–1994), violinist Matteo Fischetti (1830–1887), pianist and composer Antonio Giovinazzi (born 1993), racing driver for Alfa Romeo in Formula One Paolo Grassi (Milan, 1919 – London, 1981), founder of the Piccolo Teatro di Milano and director of the Teatro alla Scala. Cosimo Damiano Lanza (Leporano, 1962), pianist, harpsichordist and composer. Director of the Accademia Musicale Mediterranea in Martina Franca.