I don't think a person can go wrong picking any area of Italy to see. Even though I haven't traveled all of Italy yet, I think I have my favorite region picked out...Toscana (Tuscany). Of course there isn't just one thing that makes this region majestic; it’s the combination of rolling hills, Cyprus trees, patches of vineyards, quaint and quiet hill towns, amazing food, good wine and the fact that it’s home to the renaissance.
One weekend a small group of us traveled to Siena, San Gimignano and the Chianti Classico region. Siena is a beautiful town with a quite famous piazza, Il Campo. It’s very large and open and is lined with shops and cafes and a very tall bell tower. Twice a year this piazza is transformed into grounds for a horse race around the border of the piazza. Siena’s duomo is one of the few real gothic cathedral south of the Alps. When planned in 1339 it was to be the largest Christian church of it’s time, but the black plague of devastated the working population in 1348. It is still a sight to behold and reminded me a lot of the duomo I saw in Orvieto.
A walk through San Gimignano is like walking back in time. Citta delle Belle Torri (City of the Beautiful Towers)
is what it’s called. It is surrounded by medieval walls, perched on top of a hill and is, of course, famous for its many towers. Today only 14 of the original 72 towers remain. I can’t imagine what it looked like with all 72! Over the wall is a great view of the Tuscan countryside. Also famous from here is one of the few Tuscan white wines; Vernaccia. I had the opportunity to taste this in my cuisine class and really liked it!
Tuscany is known for its wine and I was fortunate enough to find a wine tour I could afford! Me and a friend toured two wineries in the Chianti region around Siena. A tour guide picked us up at the hotel and drove us around the country to the wineries. It was nice to see everything from a car and not a train. The first stop was to Castello di Meleto. There is actually a 13th century
castle of the family that used to own all the land surrounding…as far as one could see. At this stop we didn’t learn a lot about wine production but got to taste some! We tasted Chianti Classico, a Chianti Classico Reserve, another red and a desert wine with dry cookies. Also along with the wine we ate some snacks, which allowed us to taste their locally made olive oil. It was so good! (bought a bottle)
The next stop was Rocca di Castagnoli. This place was like it’s own little village. It was a little fancier than the last but still had a welcoming feel. Here we actually toured the cellars and was told a bit about wine production in this region. Some of the barrels were so big! Later at the tasting we were taught how to evaluate a wine; what to look for, what to smell, etc. We tasted the
same types, but they were a little different than Castello di Meleto.
Chianti Classico is the most well know and highest produced at 90 million liters annually. The wine actually made from the Chianti region is marked with a black rooster. Chianti Classico can be made in other places following the guidelines, but cannot put a black rooster on the bottle. Chianti Classico is made with 90% sangiovese grapes. It’s stored in the wooden barrel (from France) for 1 year and in the bottle for 6 months before it’s ready. The reserve is stored in the barrel for 2 years and in the bottle for 1 year. I really enjoyed this weekend in Tuscany!
One weekend a small group of us traveled to Siena, San Gimignano and the Chianti Classico region. Siena is a beautiful town with a quite famous piazza, Il Campo. It’s very large and open and is lined with shops and cafes and a very tall bell tower. Twice a year this piazza is transformed into grounds for a horse race around the border of the piazza. Siena’s duomo is one of the few real gothic cathedral south of the Alps. When planned in 1339 it was to be the largest Christian church of it’s time, but the black plague of devastated the working population in 1348. It is still a sight to behold and reminded me a lot of the duomo I saw in Orvieto.
A walk through San Gimignano is like walking back in time. Citta delle Belle Torri (City of the Beautiful Towers)
is what it’s called. It is surrounded by medieval walls, perched on top of a hill and is, of course, famous for its many towers. Today only 14 of the original 72 towers remain. I can’t imagine what it looked like with all 72! Over the wall is a great view of the Tuscan countryside. Also famous from here is one of the few Tuscan white wines; Vernaccia. I had the opportunity to taste this in my cuisine class and really liked it!Tuscany is known for its wine and I was fortunate enough to find a wine tour I could afford! Me and a friend toured two wineries in the Chianti region around Siena. A tour guide picked us up at the hotel and drove us around the country to the wineries. It was nice to see everything from a car and not a train. The first stop was to Castello di Meleto. There is actually a 13th century
castle of the family that used to own all the land surrounding…as far as one could see. At this stop we didn’t learn a lot about wine production but got to taste some! We tasted Chianti Classico, a Chianti Classico Reserve, another red and a desert wine with dry cookies. Also along with the wine we ate some snacks, which allowed us to taste their locally made olive oil. It was so good! (bought a bottle)The next stop was Rocca di Castagnoli. This place was like it’s own little village. It was a little fancier than the last but still had a welcoming feel. Here we actually toured the cellars and was told a bit about wine production in this region. Some of the barrels were so big! Later at the tasting we were taught how to evaluate a wine; what to look for, what to smell, etc. We tasted the
same types, but they were a little different than Castello di Meleto.Chianti Classico is the most well know and highest produced at 90 million liters annually. The wine actually made from the Chianti region is marked with a black rooster. Chianti Classico can be made in other places following the guidelines, but cannot put a black rooster on the bottle. Chianti Classico is made with 90% sangiovese grapes. It’s stored in the wooden barrel (from France) for 1 year and in the bottle for 6 months before it’s ready. The reserve is stored in the barrel for 2 years and in the bottle for 1 year. I really enjoyed this weekend in Tuscany!
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