Having a glass of wine in public.

Yes, it is legal. And in fact you will see plenty of American college kids walking around with a flask of Chianti.

However article 688 of the Italian Penal Code states that "whoever is found in a state of manifest drunkenness in public or in a place open to the public is punishable with an administrative fine from a minimum of €51 to a maximum of €309."

If one is a habitual drunkard there will also be the prohibition from entering any place where alcohol is sold for a minimum period of one year.

So drink freely in public, but in moderation. Being "manifestly" drunk is not allowed (at least according to the law).

Italians however don't generally walk around with a bottle of wine. Wine is considered something that you drink sitting down during a meal, not while strolling. However if it's hot Italians will walk around sipping a can of beer just like Americans may walk around with a can of coke.

Actually, the Venetian way seems to be to buy a glass of wine in the bacaro, grab cicchetti, and walk outside and enjoy it on the street or by the canal.

Some of my favorite times have been hanging out with a bunch of strangers outside a wine shop - all enjoying a glass of wine by a canal. You will meet lots of locals who are most friendly, wanting to practice their English, willing to help you with your Italian, and full of suggestions for otherwise unknown places for dinner. I say go for it! It is the Venice most people miss!

The answers about drinking were so interesting that here are two articles from the Walks of Italy blog. Can't wait to enjoy aperitivo.

http://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/food-and-wine/italian-aperitivo

https://www.walksofitaly.com/blog/food-and-wine/drink-like-an-italian

We were touring Venice on our own and ran into one of Rick's guides. She showed us a bar in Venice that filled up our water bottles with wine. That was unique drinking it out of a plastic bottle. The next day we stopped into another bar and they filled up our clear water bottle with wine.

Sounds like wine is OK, but we were really surprised a couple of years ago when the elderly woman with whom we shared a bench in St. Marks Square was instantly busted the moment she pulled a tangerine out of her purse.

It is against the law to picnic in Piazza San Marco. And you aren't supposed to sit on the ground or steps of churches or bridges to eat or drink. I don't know if that includes drinking wine, but I wouldn't do it. You could drink from a plastic bottle while standing, or walking around, but that doesn't sound like a good way to enjoy the wine. Why not do as the Venetians do and pop into a bar for an ombré? Or an apertivo or regular glass of wine? You can buy at the bar and pay the "stand up" price, then step outside and enjoy the scene as well as the wine.

If you want to buy bulk wine to fill a plastic bottle, you do that at a wine shop, not a bar. It is called "vino sfuso". We paid around 3-4 euros for a liter, but I didn't like the wine and ended up using it for cooking. For a few euros more (7,90) we could get a nice bottle of my favorite Pinot Grigio ( Santa Margherita) which costs around $21 in the US. So why drink the cheap stuff?

Thanks for the comment.

De gustibus non est disputandum

A pedestrian wine? Is that the kind you drink when walking in public? It sounds good to me, Sasha!

Yes, it would be perfect for that! You can find it at the Coop grocery in Venice. I don't think Billa carries it.

I actually agree that Santa Margherita is overpriced in the US ( which is why we liked the price i n Venice). We also enjoyed a 12 euro wine that started with an "L". Lugano or something like that.

The Pinot Grigio we buy in the US actually comes from Oregon. The Canadians make some nice Pinot Gris in BC, but they don't export it, AFAIK. At least I've never seen it here, even in Seattle.

One of the things we do when we travel to new places is to try to live more like the locals, so we can come closer to their experience and also out of respect for their traditions. I'm saying that because I just want people to remember what Roberto said at the start of these responses (and which has been echoed by all the Italians I know whenever the subject has come up): " Wine is considered something that you drink sitting down during a meal, not while strolling."

Also, Italian wines as a rule go much better with food than on their own.

Having spent so much time in France, I wasn't aware there was wine in Italy ; LOL. George and others, please send me some educational links about wine in Italy that I can download and read on the plane over. In the Bologna, Ravenna, Florence and Padua areas, what should we watch for? What about wine in the Bolzano area?