An Afternoon in Wine Country

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Geo: 43.7687, 11.2569

Our plan for today was to do a bike ride into the country to visit Greve and see some of the wine country. With temperatures soaring above 97 degrees we opted for Plan B which was to cover the same territory and more by a van tour. So this morning we went in search of the ticket office. We were first told, "Sorry, that tour is full." As the woman was explaining an alternative bus tour not quite as extensive, some guy came up and said, "This is your lucky day. We'll add a second tour and so far it's just you two on it." So we purchased our tickets and would later be picked up at our hotel.

We continued to walk through the streets to view morning activity and revisited Palazzo Vecchio. There is always so much activity in these squares you can lose track of time. Besides people watching there are street vendors selling copies of Florence scenes, toys, shirts, scarves and more. This morning there was a guitar player from Poland providing musical entertainment. He was very good. Next to him was a mime statue all dressed and face painted in an off white color. He stood perfectly still, eyes closed, until he heard someone drop money in his box. Then very slowly and mechanical like he would reach out to shake their hand. He has definitely perfected his art.

We went in a store to browse and take a break from the heat. We spent the next hour in conversation with the owner. She said we needed to get into the courtry in order to see the real Italy. She discussed the differences between Florentine store owners and everyone else and told us that true Florentine are artisans and business people and the Venetians are strictly business people. She has been in business for over 20 years and has learned a lot about peoples' character by the way they handle the goods in her store. She was very friendly and has much information about the people and area to share.

Time flew by as always and we needed to catch lunch before our tour. We stopped in a cafe for a proscuitto, fresh mozerrella and tomato sancwich. It was another good choice!

Our guide, Matteo, picked us up as planned. He had two other passengers for the tour to pick up also. We made our way to their pick up spot. Walking in these streets is scary because of the cars, bicycles, and motorcycles. Being in a car is even worse. You see people ahead and he just keeps going and says it's okay they will move. He didn't stop or even slow down for them. I guess you have to drive that way because if you keep stopping for the people you'd never get to your destination. The people we picked up were two girls, Jen from California and Flavia from St. Clair Shores, Michigan. It's a small world. They worked together in Chicago and when the company they worked for (Borg Warner) moved to Auburn Hills they went separate ways, but still vacation together.

The wine tour was terrific! Matteo took us on the old road which connects the Florence and Siena Chianti regions where the famous Chianti Classico wine is produced. We traveled through the wooded hills among castles, vineyards,and farms. The farms were growing corn and hay. Besides the grape vineyards there were plenty of olive trees. The country is indeed beautiful.

We stopped at two vineyards for wine tasting. They were both in San Gimignano. The first stop was strictly a wine tasting and explanation about the grapes and the history of the vineyard. Along with the 8 wines we tasted we were each given a plate of salami, cheese, chips, and bread with olive oil. One of the wines was white. The others were red. All were quite good, but I preferred the white. At the second winery we were given a tour of the facility to see where the grapes are kept in oak barrels, the steel tanks where the fermentation process occurs and the bottling and aging process occurs. It was very interesting. One of the steel fermentation tanks holds enough wine to fill twenty thousand bottles. Wow! After the tour we again had a tasting. This time three reds, including the Chianti Classico. We were again given plates of proscuitto, salami, and cheese.

During our ride we stopped in two small villages. Each had only one main street. The first was San Gimignano. The second village was Greve. They are becoming more touristy over the years. The store owner from this morning said fifteen years ago those villages were nothing. Shops and restaurants lined the streets in each town.

After leaving Greve we returned to Florence and were once again dropped off at our hotel. Taking the time to visit the wine country was a good decision. The country life is truly different than the city life and not that far out of town!

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Comments

[Kathy Nichols]

Dang, those steel fermentation tanks are massive. I mean, I was thinking it would be cool to bring one home. We're having hot weather here too, but we're not touring; staying in the AC. Hey, Linda, were you giggling after the wine tasting?

[Amy cabe]

I can imagine the condition you were in after all that wine!