Blog - Part 2

Wine In Tuscany Part V, Central Tuscany: Brunello Di Montalcino

On November 25, 2016 / Brunello di Montalcino, Montalcino

Brunello di Montalcino DOCG Brunello di Montalcino the hills around the Tuscan town of Montalcino produce some of the most expensive and sought after wines in Italy, Brunello di Montalcino DOCG. In fact, in 1980, Brunello became the first ever area to be awarded DOCG status (ifRead more →

Wine In Tuscany Part IV, Central Tuscany: Chianti

On November 24, 2016 / Chianti, Florence, Sangiovese, Wine

The Chianti Wine Region In Central Tuscany The term Chianti has been around since 1398 but the original wine produced in the Chianti area was white. By 1716 the area now known as Chianti Classico was officially established. In 1870 Barone Riccasoli wrote a recipe for ChiantiRead more →

Wine In Tuscany Part III, Tuscan Wine Growing Areas

On November 24, 2016 / Wine

Wine Growing Areas In Tuscany There are two major areas of wine production in Tuscany, the central hills and the Mediterranean coast. Central Tuscany includes all of Chianti (Chianti Classico and the other Chianti areas), Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Brunello di Montalcino, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, Carmignano,Read more →

Wine In Tuscany Part II – Vines & Grapes

On November 23, 2016 / Sangiovese, Trebbiano, Wine

Vines & Grapes Grown In Tuscany There are around 58000 hectares of vineyard in Tuscany, vines are mainly planted in hilly areas, 85% of the vines are red grape varieties with sangiovese the main grape. 69% of wines are classified as DOP (DOCG and DOC) and 25% IGPRead more →

Wine In Tuscany Part I (An Overview)

On November 23, 2016 / Sangiovese, Wine

Tuscan Wine, A Quick Introduction In Tuscany the sangiovese grape is king, the famous wine growing areas of Montepulciano (Vino Nobile di Montepulciano), Montalcino (Brunello di Montalcino), Chianti and Scansano (Morellino di Scansano) all base their wines on this grape. Sangiovese is one of world's great grapes.Read more →

Wine In Umbria

On November 5, 2016 / Grechetto, Sangiovese, Trebbiano Spoletino, Wine

Umbria & Wine - An Overview The region of Umbria is located right in the centre of Italy, the landscape comprises hills, valleys and mountains as well as Lake Trasimeno. Most of the wine growing areas follow the Tiber and other river valleys or are found around theRead more →

Italian Wine, What Are The Terms DOCG, DOC, DOP, IGT & IGP?

On November 1, 2016 / Wine

Wines at the Pardi Cantina, Montefalco, Umbria

The Complicated World Of Italian Wine Terms I will soon be publishing posts on Umbrian Wines and Tuscan Wines, and, rather than write it out for each post, I thought I'd write this guide to quickly explain the terms DOCG, DOC, DOP, IGT and IGP and VinoRead more →

Pian di Marte Walk 2016

On September 4, 2016 / Activities

In early June 2016 I took a couple of friends on the Pian di Marte Walk, a route from my book, Circular Walks On The Tuscany Umbria Border, available as a Kindle download from Amazon. It's a fairly long walk and took us over 4 hours, soRead more →

A Visit To The Preggio Vineyard

On September 2, 2016 / Grechetto, Niccone Valley, Sangiovese, Wine

Sangiovese Vines At The Preggio Vineyard, Italy

In the last year I have met Elena Vezzoli of Azienda Agricola Biologica Preggio at several local wine tastings. Elena has a two hectare vineyard with her husband Bruno and make around 9000 bottles of wine a year, two thirds of the production is red and oneRead more →

A Long Lazy Ferragosto Lunch At Trattoria Del Verziere, Montone

On September 1, 2016 / Food, Restaurant

In the middle of August there is a bank holiday called Ferragosto in Italy and the whole country pretty much shuts down for the day. This year the 15th fell on a Monday and we booked a table with friends at Taverna Del Verziere in the nearbyRead more →