We are not interested in taking wine tour but will have a car to drive around Tuscany outside Lucca (could head down to Sienna). I am looking for suggestions for a couple wineries to stop by. Thank you
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Portland, Oregon, USA
320 posts
Rosemary:
In my experience the wineries in Italy are not like many here in the US - where one can just drop by. You need to make an appointment. The Chianti region (roughly between Florence and Siena) is covered in wineries. Your innkeeper will undoubtedly have some great wine advice for you.
A couple of our favorites are Panzanello (located just outside of Panzano - directly between Florence and Siena). Panzanello makes very nice wines. It is a small, friendly operation. The owners speak English and the facility is interesting. Just google them and find their website - I think you can make an appointment over the website. If not, just call when you are in Italy.
Another fun spot is Volpaia. You do not necessarily need a reservation there but you may want one anyway. Volpaia is a tiny hilltop village and the entire little village is the winery. It is a neat place. There are a couple of nice places to eat there but if you make an appointment to tour the winery/village you can also have a special dinner as part of the tour. It was a real highlight of our trip in 2007. Volpaia is located near Greve (just south of Florence). Have fun.