Ultimate Tuscan Wine Tour

Day 1: Pick up from the Central Station of Florence

On day one, your local guide will come and pick you up from the Central Station of Florence before dropping your off to your new Tuscan home. This new home that you will be staying in is a private apartment in a local Tuscan farmhouse. Once you arrive in your apartment, you will be participating at your first Tuscany dinner. This is our way of letting yourselves be familiar with some delicious local food and bond with the locals.  As farmhouse, it is surrendered of a lots of green. It has a farm as well with many animals and of course a big swimming pool, a restaurant for dinners and breakfast, a laundry and WiFi. The farmhouse has 12 individual apartments. it used to be a tiny village. All guests will stay on the same farmhouse property but they will be in the own private accommodation with their own facilities.

Day 2: Vernaccia Wine and San Gimignano

For our Sunday agenda, we will have white wine which will be dedicated to the La Vernaccia Tuscan wine.

Our morning will be spent driving around the countryside of Castelvecchio National Park and San Gimignano. Upon driving, we will get a chance to taste some of the stunning wines and delicious foods that these 2 wineries provide.

Vernaccia di San Gimignano is named as one of the top wines in Tuscany. The Vernaccia-based wine from San Gimignano comes with a long history, and during the Renaissance period, local Vernaccia is famous for being Italy’s noblest wine. There’s no doubt that its fame has a connection to the region where it all started, San Gimignano. San Gimignano is an ancient town in Tuscany that is famous for its medieval towers, and there’s no doubt that it is also popular because of its wine. In Dante’s Divine Comedy and San Gimignano’s records, it was shown that the Vernaccia wine grape was mentioned in as early as 1276. The name was originally thought to have originated from the word vernaculum meaning “of the place” and is the etymological root for the word “vernacular.”

For the afternoon, we will be heading to the gorgeous village of San Gimignano wherein you can have some time to explore the entire town. San Gimignano is well-known for its well preserved medieval architectures and lofty towers where visitors can enjoy a panoramic view of the valley that surrounds it. During its glory days, the patrician families of San Gimignano had built an estimate of 72 tower houses to symbolize its wealth and power. Even though that only 14 are left, San Gimignano still retains its magical appearance and feudal atmosphere.

Finally, we will conclude the day having dinner at the farmhouse

Day 3: Morellino and Montecucco wines

Today is red wine day! We will taste some of the best red Italian wines from Maremma in
Tuscany. It’s not a surprise that Tuscan red wine is considered one of the best in the
world. The winemakers of the region have centuries of experience just to master it. Wine
is made here ever since the Etruscan times wherein it was sold all over Europe.
Once breakfast is done, we will start heading to the Maremma Toscana and before
passing through the countryside between Montecucco and Montiano. Then, we will keep
going to the top 2 best local wineries while tasting some samples of fine wines as we go
along our way. These wineries are being run by a local family who has years of
experience in producing some of the most sensational Montecucco and Morellino di
Scansano wines. We will be having a scrumptious lunch on one of the two local wineries
and indulge ourselves with sample traditional foods that came from Maremma.
The tour will end with a visit in Santa Fiora in Val D’orcia before coming back to the
apartment.

One of the most famous Tuscan wines is Morellino, and the delicious undertones
combine the hills from which it hails the fragrances of the sea. The wine is being made
around the valleys of Scansano wherein the Sangiovese grapes that are being grown
there got the name Morellino which means brown one or little dark. The reason for its
name is either because of the color of the grape, or perhaps it boasts a resemblance to
the local breed of horses, the Maremmano. According to the chair of the Decanter World
Wine Awards, Mr Richard Baudains, wine lovers who want to indulge themselves in the
real flavors of Tuscany should find out about these little-known wines of Montecucco.

The historic Tuscan DOCs were made in the year 1960 and the very first DOCGs in the year 1980. It was only in 1998 when Montecucco came to be. During that time, the producers’ register contained only about 10 names or so and the area nearly had 100 hectares of vineyard. Each of the producers has their story to tell, but the group they formed is cohesive and shares a lot of philosophies. One of their key examples for this one is that they are committed to growing their crops organically and a majority of the top producers in Montecucco practice biodynamic or organic viticulture.

Day 4: Cooking Class, Florence, Arezzo and Siena

On the third day of our tour, you can choose between relaxing at the farm or we can organize an extra day tour in Florence or Arezzo or Siena upon request. If you are interested on visiting museums, churches or any particular place in any city, it is advisable to inform us in advance as they require reservations in advance. Please, enquire to get a quote. In the evening you can enjoying a cooking class with our local chef, with whom you will prepare dinner.

Day 5: Bolgheri and Castagneto Carducci

Once you get a view of this place, you can say that it is one of the most stunning areas in Tuscany. Our day will start with a drive to the valley through the famous “avenue of cypress trees” to get to the first local winery.

Then we will stop in Bolgheri for lunch, before continuing along the main road to make a visit to one additional winery. In this winery, you will have a free sample of their fine wines as well as a visit to their wine cellars. In Bolgheri, you will see one of the most prestigious vineyard areas in all of Italy. The winemaking zone of the area consists of a sloping coastal vineyard at the bottom of the hills between the town of Bolgheri and the southern part of Castagemeto. It has a proximity location to the Tyrrhenian Sea and is being described as “the golden oasis of the Maremma.” In the year 1960s, the wine industry in Tuscan needs a bit of a shake-up, and Bolgheri was one of the avant-garde areas that brought the region back to life. The locals employed a tactic to start a new trend of non-DOC wines, and by 1968, a new style of wine was born which was dubbed as the Super Tuscan. The Super Tuscan’s flagship wine is named Sassicaia.

The famous avenue of cypress trees is located in the municipality of Castagneto Carducci and is a 5km stretch of road that links the oratory of San Guido to the village of Bolgheri. The long road is linear and is flanked by 2 rows of 2,540 century-old cypress trees. The road was built in the 18th century wherein it was when officials decided to create perpendicular roads along the Via Regio which will connect the smaller towns in the countryside to Bolgheri. This road has the memorable verse from the poem of
Giosuè Carducci entitled Davanti San Guido to thank for its fame. The poet has been a resident here for several years as well. There is a small obelisk at the start of the road which was placed by Giuseppe della Gherardesca in 1908 to commemorate the famous poet.

Day 6: Brunello di Montalcino Vs Nobile di Montepulciano

Today, we will visit Montalcino, which is renowned for Brunello di Montalcino, a red wine that is widely regarded as one of the top three red wines in the world. You’ll have an opportunity to learn more about this wine with a visit to one of the region’s most prestigious wineries and cellars. Later, we will visit Montepulciano, a famous medieval village that is replete with Tuscan history and an area of the region that is renowned for its cultural summer festival and fairs.

Our tour will continue with a visit to the city walls, where you’ll have an opportunity to watch skilled tradesmen and women at work using traditional manufacturing techniques to shape copper in their old artisan shops. We’ll also stop by some of the characteristic enoteche (wine shops). The day will end at restaurant at the accommodation.

Day 7: The Chianti Region

For all wine enthusiasts, this is certainly the day for you! For today, we will be visiting Chianti in Tuscany wherein it has the most notable vineyards and castle. You’ll learn some of the deepest secrets of these renowned wines in Chianti. We will also have a side visit to the extra virgin olive producer where you will learn more about the olive groves and artisan oils of the region. After sampling some of Chianti’s famous fare, we will go next to the Greve to visit the region’s renowned deli and butchery. We will conclude the day having dinner at the farmhouse.

Day 8: Drop off in Florence

The tour will end with a hearty breakfast before we make our goodbyes to you at the train station of Florence.