Tuscany winery recommendations?

Planning a trip for May 2022

-Spending 3 days in Pienza, so need recommendations for best wineries to visit for Brunello di Montalcino. Have previously been to Altesino, Casanova di Neri and Ciacci Piccolomini d’Aragona

-Spending 2 days in Chianti. Ditto for wineries there. Have previously enjoyed Felsina and Tolaini

-Spending 3 days in Florence, but reviewing previous threads has given me lots of options for tasting in the city

Thanks!

Tolaini! Top notch experience.

You say you’re looking to taste Brunello when in Pienza but this might interest you also.

Actually went there our last trip

If you like avignonesi you should try capannelle. They do a super Tuscan together.

We really enjoyed the lunch and tasting at Casa Emma in the chianti classico region.

We stayed in Pienza in Fall of 2019 and loved it. We stayed at the La Bandita Townhouse. Dinner at their restaurant was without a doubt the best meal we had in Pienza. We only did one tasting during our stay. We did the lunch and tour at Col D’Orca and really enjoyed the visit and the wines. They have a significant number of library wines available for purchase and tasting. Highly recommend a stop there. Wine Tour Montalcino

We’ll be in Montalcino in mid Sept. I don’t have any wine visits lined up but might do a drop in visit depending on schedule. We have lined up Locanda Demetra for a visit to their cooking class and lunch. They also are available for lunch and dinner. @dennis attack has a great post about his lunch there in 2019. The family was also featured on episode 3 of Bobby and Giada in Italy. http://montalcinocookingschool.com/

I’ll circle back after our visit.

Cheers

Fred- Have a great trip. We loved Locanda Demetra as you know. Cool tip that they were featured on the show.
Le Ragnaie is practically walking distance from Locanda Demetra - easy for a quick visit before/after lunch. We did 11:30 at the winery and 1 for lunch or something like that.

Look forward to your report!

We did Castello di Verrazzano, Felsina, Castello Vicchiomaggio, and Antinori (just for the architecture). Make sure to check out the Wine Lovers Academy in Greve; almost every wine in Tuscany was for sale at a good price. One of my top memories was I was sitting on a bridge outside of the Wine Lovers Academy, at sunset, with my nephew, watching otters play in the creek below, and eating great gelato.

Love the juice from Casa Emma

Me too. Had a really nice 2015 Gran Selezione last night. Unbelievable Costco find a few months ago.

Would definitely pile onto this rec, but it’s a bit more “touristy”. Casa Sola is also nearby and a little more secluded and private. We loved both visits and wines.

We swung by Fontodi before, and that was odd but pretty cool. It was off peak time (March) and it was just me and my wife. I had emailed before to coordinate time, but couldn’t find anyone around or a tasting room. After wandering around a few minutes, someone opened an upstairs office door and waved us in. They opened 5 bottles for us in a room just off the office area. Included tasting of Flaccianello which we purchased from the estate for $55 euros/bottle.

Really can’t miss in the area though. Such a neat experience

Thanks everyone for the recommendations. I’m making a list!

Fred, what a coincidence. We’re also staying at La Bandita Townhouse. Gonna be there 3 nights. Any other dinner recommendations for Pienza? (Or should we just eat at the La Bandita restaurant every night? )

I stayed at La Bandita Townhouse as well in Pienza. This was after a day of tasting in Montalcino.

Rhodes- Osteria Perilla was a terrific lunch and worthy of it’s Michellin star. Follows the Michellin script but food and service were excellent. It’s in Castiglione D’ Orca so you might want to line up a driver if your going for dinner.
Trattoria da Fiorella in Pienza is a solid casual trattoria and a nice casual dinner. The pecorino appetizer and pici pasta are the house favorites and good but basic dishes. We enjoyed it. If Chef David is still the chef at Bandita I would probably do 2 meals there. We absolutely loved his food. The technique and execution were tops and as good or better than the 1 star restaurants we went to during our trip.

Here’s my write up from 2 years ago Eating and Drinking in Italy, -Florence, SML and Tuscany - Travel, Wine Tourism, and Restaurants Forum - WineBerserkers

Fred,

Thanks so much!

Hi Rhodes
Looks like we’re heading back to Italy in 23. We’ll be with some friends on their first trip. We’re going to spend some time in Tuscany before landing in Florence. I’m considering staying in Pienza again but we’ve never been to the Chianti region and looking for some perspective. Which do you prefer and why Chianti region to Val d’Orcia ? Interested in others thoughts as well.
@Dennis_Atick - I missed your recommendation on Le Ragnaie up thread. I’ve had the 18 and 19 RDM, Really great wines but the 18 was a heck of a qpr, 19 not so much with the price increase.

Cheers

Both are lovely, but the views in Val d’Orcia are just unparalleled. Pienza is such a great location /base to hit both Brunello and Vino Nobile Montepulciano. We’ve enjoyed Capanna, Casonova di Neri, Altesino, and Ciacci Picolomini. Had a great tasting at Enotecca la Fortezza (8 wines). You can certainly pop up and hit the southern part of Chianti from Pienza (Bearadenga….We had a great tour/lunch at Felsina).

Travel through Chianti is a bit of a pain with multiple winding, gravel roads. The views are not nearly as picturesque as Val d’Orcia. We did enjoy Istine and Basilica Cafaggio

In short, I vote for Pienza for the “wine” portion of your trip, then Florence for the art/culture. (Of course, with many visits to Enoteca Pitti )

Ciao,

Rhodes (Buck) Kriete

It’s not napa LOL

Thanks Rhodes, exactly what i was looking for. Appreciate the feedback. I found a cool Agriturismo. Il Casalino Pienza, it’s located just below the village and looks like a good spot for lodging.

Give me feedback on your trip. Love to keep compiling information about one of our favorite places!