Driving along the rocky back dirt roads of Tuscany between little rustic towns searching for the the authentic Italian experience… that was our every day for 12 days. Every day we had no idea where we were going to end up or what we might stumble upon. Sometimes there’s something thrilling about the unknown. Although this method of last minute travel isn’t the best for everyone or easy at the slightest, it enabled us to hop day to day, town to town and see the most of Tuscany.
Specifically I’ll take you through the wineries we visited and you can check out my other posts for more of Tuscany adventures. A few tips to start out.Unless your trip is completely planned and you have a driver to drive you around a car is completely necessary. More fun facts 3 MILES AWAY ON GOOGLE MEANS 30 MINUTES. That is no joke. Since all of the roads between waierys are steep dirt roads in takes foreverrrrr to go anywhere. I also would pack some dramine for motion sickness if you get queezy.
A Tuesday in Tuscany
- Castiglion Del Bosco
- Poggio Antico
- Podere Le Ripi
Castiglion Del Bosco
Località Castiglion del Bosco, 53024 Montalcino (Siena), Italy
VIEW MAP Tel: +39 0577 1913001 Email: cdelbosco@rosewoodhotels.com
Owned by Massimo and Chiara Ferragamo this beauty is restored and renowned as a simply stunning estate Rosewood Hotel and Bosco Winery. On our first winery visit in Tuscany the lovely Filippo, guided us through the beautiful winery, explaining the history of the property and wine-making processes. We fentured down to the cellar where French oak casks filled the aroma of the room. Its as though the room stretched for days and embodied all we imagined of the Brunello best.
At hte end of the whole trip I still continued to bring up how much I enjoyed the super Tuscan here. To say it was unforgettable is an understatement.
Visiting Options
1,) Wine Experience: In this seminar explore the art of wine making, visit the vineyards, cellar and aging room with an expert guide. (hopefully Flippo!) Includes a tasting of six wines. Duration: 1.5 hours
2.) Cheese and Wine Pairing: Learn how to match different types of Italian cheeses with Castiglion del Bosco wines, including the limited productions of Brunello di Montalcino Riserva Millecento and Vin Santo sweet wine San Michele. Duration: 2 hours
3.) The Vertical Tasting: Tasting of seven remarkable Brunello di Montalcino vintages is a must for wine lovers visiting Tuscany. Brunello di Montalcino vintages, including two from the 90 best years of the Riserva di Brunello di Montalcino and the first vintage of the renowned single-Vineyard Campo del Drago. Duration 1.5 hours.
Poggio Antico
53024 Montalcino (Siena), Italy
T: +39 0577-848044
This was by far my favorite winery in Montalcino for a few reasons. The modern decor in the tasting room, the beauteous landscaped vineyard, but most importantly the kind, informative, and fun staff! The grounds are drenched in year-round sunlight and produce a wide variety of wines. Since my husband was driving therefore at most vineyards we purchased one tasting and shared. We immediately dove into the 6 wines and really enjoyed our time learning about the rocky soil that enables drainage of the land, the breeze from the Tyranian Sea, and most importantly their wine is made with ONLY their estate grapes. There’s nothing like homemade love in a bottle! Plus we even had a chance to try their olive oil and port! I highly suggest climbing to the tops of the mountains to experiences all that is Poggio Antico.
3 wines (Brunello OR Altero + Riserva + Super Tuscan) – €15.00
4 wines (Brunello OR Altero + Riserva + 2 Super Tuscans) – €18.00
5 wines (Rosso + Brunello + Altero + Riserva + Super Tuscan) – €22.00
6 wines (Rosso + Brunello + Altero + Riserva + 2 Super Tuscans) – €25.00
We ended up taking home about 3 bottles of wine here. My personal favorite was the Madre IGT.
Nestled in the natural forest which surrounds the grounds of Poggio Antico lies the Madre house, after which our first Super Tuscan was named. A blend of 50% Sangiovese and 50% Cabernet Sauvignon, this wine is the perfect balance between power and sophistication.
Podere Le Ripi
Our last winery of the day is a special bio-dynamic ecosystem. What did that mean to us? Well their wine cellar is unlike anything you’ve seen before and its called the Golden Cellar.
A cellar built using only ancient construction techniques; from the relations among spatial dimensions, strictly following the Golden Ratio, to the use of natural clay bricks and a mortar made of lime. This building chases harmony and that’s given in return to the wine during its refining here for the first years of its life.
Unfortunately this winery really lacked charm, hospitable staff, and decent wine. To say the least the atmosphere of the staff may have through off my taste buds over all. You can tell by the chalk boards hung in the tasting room that they are aware of what some may call drawback to their winery and they embrace them. We also indicated that we did not want a tour when we called to schedule but we were still wrapped into a tour of the facilities with the only other couple there. I may have been getting a little hangryyy. However I must add that we did love that they offered fresh parmigiana with the tasting. I was starving at the end of the day! Not many of the wineries offer food so you might want to keep a bag of snacks for those 30 minute drive blocks between wineries! If anything else I did love the quote in their brochure…
Love is essentially crazy.But the outcomes as foolish as it might be, is always magical. Therefore be crazy my friend. — Francesco Illy
