We are planning to be in Tuscany for 4 days, 2 days in Siena and 2 days in Florence. We will have a car and would be driving from Rome to Siena. We want to do RS's Heart of Tuscany drive while on the way to Siena. We would like to stop on the way at a winery and do wine tasting and maybe lunch. Would like to get some suggestions for the winery to stop at and do I need to make reservations? Is it possible to do just wine tasting or having a meal with it a must?
We are 3 adults and one of us will not do the tasting and would be the designated driver.
Thanks!
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11333 posts
While north of Siena, Chianti is compelling and you could do a tour there, between Siena and Florence. You might check out this advice https://www.dalluva.com/member-area/forums/reply/7505/. Michael, who runs this site, is a friend of ours. We used some of the info from this article a few years ago to take a drive in Chianti. The recommended Osteria Le Panzanelle is terrific. Note drop-in tastings are rarely done, unless something has changed since the pandemic.
I can also recommend Ventolaio https://www.ventolaio.it/en/, where we visited and purchased wines a few times when we lived in Italy.
Posted by
OP
Usa
42 posts
Since we are trying to combine the Heart of Tuscany drive with the wine tasting stop, reserving ahead of time will not work out. We dont want to rush through the drive to reach in time for wine tasting. I am thinking of more like impromptu pulling into a winery and doing some tasting. Is this unheard of?
@Laurel, wine tasting in Chianti is also a good idea but again would prefer an impromptu visit rather than a pre reserved one. Have just finished buying the tickets etc to the attractions in Rome. It is hoing to be crazy there so just want to have a relaxing time a Tuscany.
Posted by
Forest Grove, OR
11333 posts
Shom,
My experience is that one does not just drop in except in an enoteca. There are very nice ones on Montalcino and Montepulciano that I am familiar with. Even a huge winery like Banfi requires booking according to their website.
It is rare to get a walk-in here in Oregon, too, since the pandemic.
Posted by
146 posts
Some suggestions if you want to combine a wine tasting, wine lunch, or wine dinner with a visit to an ancient abbey or castle in the Chianti area...
Castello di Brolio
Castello di Gabbiano
Castello di Meleto
Castello Della Paneretta
Badia a Coltibuono Abbey
Castello di Verrazzano
Castello di Querceto
Castello Vicchiomaggio
Albola Castle
We did manage to just drop in on Castello di Gabbiano and do a wine tasting, and most places will accommodate you if there is room in the next scheduled tasting, but most do ask you to make a reservation. Castello Della Paneretta gave us a very memorable private wine tasting in the castle dining room, and the wine lunch that we had outdoors in the garden patio at Castello Vicchiomaggio was an amazing experience that we'll never forget.
Posted by
Rural Georgia
2112 posts
I see you want to do an impromptu tasting as you discover an interesting winery. You could do that I guess, but I highly recommend you make a reservation and do a food and wine tasting.
The main reason is Chianti is not a sipping wine and cannot be enjoyed to the fullest without pairing it with a food dish. The same goes for other wines, such as a super Tuscan and even prosecco. You also mentioned you wanted to have a relaxing experience and an unhurried food and wine tasting would fit the bill.
We stayed at Castello di Verrazzano for a week. It's just outside Greve. We scheduled a tour of the winery followed by a lunch food and wine tasting for the first full day we were there. It was a highlight of the trip.
They started with antipasto (appetizer) served with a wonderful prosecco. This was followed by primo, which was a traditional pasta dish served with their Chianti. After that, there was secondo, which was a meat dish cooked on their open grill and served with their Chiani Reserva. After that, there was a cheese course served with their super Tuscan and their amazing balsamic vinegar. Finally there was dessert, which was biscotti served with vin Santo.
There were a few other couples and they finished long before we did, but we lingered, even visiting with the owner and the vintner. We were invited to join them in sampling the new vintage and sharing our opinions. We didn't have to eat dinner that night! Since we were staying there, we wandered the castle grounds after lunch, then rested before driving into Greve in the evening to stroll and see the Christmas market.