We rented a car from Siena to do a day trip around the Tuscan hillside towns, and it was the best day of our trip. However, driving on the right side of the road, and trying to read maps and Italian road signs was pretty stressful, and we basically overestimated ourselves and underestimated the complexity of the Italian road & traffic system. We got lost a couple of times, but thankfully met a few kind souls who helped us back on the right track.
The scenery was beautiful, and the weather was a perfect 26 deg C.
We stopped many, many times where it was safe enough to take photos
Our first stop was Montepulciano, about 45 mins drive from Siena. Apparently the modus operandi for Italian wineries is for you to email or ring up before showing up at the doorstep for tastings, quite unlike the Australian wineries who are basically open all day for business. We had booked an appointment at a winery called Dei.
The visit came with a tour of their vineyard - these are large steel vats where they ferment the grape juice
And then after the grape juice is fermented, it's left to age in these oak barrels
Bottles being filled up and corked.
Labels are stuck on by machine, and then the bottles are packed.
Different barrels for different wines
We got to taste a Rosso di Montepulciano, 2 Vino Nobiles (one riserva) and a Super Tuscan. I won't bother trying to describe the complexities of each wine but the Vino Nobiles were amazing. It was a pity the husband had to drive and I had to navigate - we wasted quite a bit of the wine. The Rosso and Vino Nobiles were 100% Sangiovese - they had to be, to be DOCG, but the Super Tuscan had a few other varieties. ALL were good.
We ended up on an unsealed road, which got us quite alarmed but turned out to be the correct road.
We finally arrived at La Porta, Montichiello, for our lunch reservation an hour late. They were very very nice about it, and made us feel right at home. The place was so packed there were people standing in the doorway waiting for a table. Fortunately we had reservations, which they had kept for us - although we had to wait for a bit.
It was a lovely day to be sitting out on the terrace. There were so many people indoors - we felt very sorry for them.
The husband had a pici with beef to start with (12 Euros)
I had a mushroom souffle with truffles
What it looked like on the inside
I had a ravioli next, stuffed with spinach and ricotta, and with truffle shavings (13 Euros)
A close-up of the ravioli
The pici resembled 老鼠粉 in appearance, but was a lot more chewy.
The inside of the ravioli
In between waiting for the main course, I went and took photos of the entrance to the town - the restaurant is right behind the arch.
Another view of the entrance to the town.
View from the restaurant looking to the right, with Pienza (another Tuscan hill town where Pecorino is produced) visible in the distance. Brings new revelation to the phrase "a city on a hill cannot be hidden" - how true!
The view looking left. In summary, gorgeous all round.
Another shot with olive trees in the foreground
We shared this serve of stewed beef cheeks (16 Euros). It was amazing - super soft and tender and yummy.
Another shot taken around 3pm - I think we were there for almost 3 hours.
Our "dessert" - grilled pecorino cheese, served on top of lettuce. This was very interesting - not too salty (thankfully), and was brilliant with wine.
The view from our seats - they had apparently saved us a table in the front row, but with our adventure on the roads it was not meant to be. Lunch cost us 60Euros, and it was such a good meal - great food, amazing service and friendly people. This tied with Sotto Le Fonti as our joint No. 1 meal of the trip.
We took a walk around the town - it was a very residential town, with hardly any businesses visible. It was very strange - I suppose the townfolk must either work in Pienza or Montepulciano.
Streets of Montichiello
It was a very pretty small and quaint town
Another view back towards the Porta
It was off to Montalcino, and we had booked a tour at Poggio Antico
We also managed to have a quick walk around the town before it got dark
View of Montalcino
The Poggio Antico vines
Grapes on the vines
Another view of the estate
The Montalcino fortezza
Streets of Montalcino
Views out to the countryside
Small, narrow and steep streets - and best of all, no cars
Similar to Dei in Montepulciano, the wine is fermented in these steel vats for a few months
And then aged in these barrels
Another view of the estate
Workers removing bad grapes from good grapes - only sangiovese is used for the Brunello
Just grapes no stems no leaves
We were allowed to go up close to the machines
Tasting time
This has been a long post and because I'm writing this at the end of the day, the brevity of the descriptions doesn't do the wines, the food or the views any justice. I'd be happy to talk if you want to find out more.
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