My husband and I are travelling to Italy in the beginning of November. Rome-2days, Tuscany-4 days and Venice for 2 days. We are SUPER excited! Thanks to Rick, we know our itinerery in Rome and Venice, but are pretty much up in the air about Tuscany except for visiting Florence on a day trip. We love wine tasting and yummy food. Any suggestions??
Posted by
Pittsburgh, PA, USA
203 posts
Visit San Gimignano and the Niccolai winery (more info at www.palagetto.it and www.agriturismoniccolai.it) for a tour, lunch and tasting or pvernight accomodations
Posted by
Toledo
653 posts
If you have a car, you can take the Wine Road between Florence and Siena and stop anywhere for great wine and food. Montepulciano and Montalcino are beautiful places - Montalcino is famous for its Brunello wine, one of the best I've ever had (and I've had lots!). Even the house wines in restaurants are delicious.
Posted by
Boulder, CO, USA
719 posts
Hi Gail, There will be wine tasting opportunities all over Tuscany, and they'll be good ones! As Zoe states, Montepulciano and Montalcino are obvious hot spots (for their vino nobile and brunello, respectively), but there are plenty of places to visit. The Chianti region is famous for, well, Chianti (sangiovese). My advice when visiting wineries and vineyards: Ask questions! Vintners and winemakers LOVE to talk about their wines, and the more questions you ask, the more they'll open up (themselves and better bottles). I had a winemaker in Montalcino this Spring (Mocali) open 11 bottles of wine for me, then sent me off with 3 unopened bottles and various pastas after several hours of discussion. It always helps to ask questions.
On the food note, if you like beef, Acquacheta (sp?) in Montepulciano is not be missed. Very unique.
Posted by
Natick, Mass, USA
31 posts
a visit to siena should be just as high up on your priorities list as a visit to florence. also, the S-222 from florence to siena, through the heart of the chianti region, has breathtaking views and great wine & food---rent a car for a day so you can enjoy this at your own pace if you aren't already doing so.