Day 9: More wine tasting and Tuscan castles!

It was our third day in wine country. We woke up and had breakfast outside.  We then departed for Castello Verrazzano- a short ten minute drive north of Greve on the SR 222. It is located in Greti.  See my review here. 

We arrived without any issues and waited a few minutes for the entire tour group to show up. After about fifteen minutes our group was there.  It was quite large, with about 30 people waiting to tour the Tuscan castle. We first toured the gardens.  Our tour guide was quite humorous, but his accent was so thick, he was somewhat difficult for us to understand at times. He briefed us on the history of the castle. Giovanni da Verrazzano, celebrated navigator and discoverer of the bay of New York and the majority of the east coast of America, was born here in 1485. The famous bridge in New York was named after him in 1964.

Wild boar are common in these parts, and we could hear them as we walked through the gardens, but could only see one sleeping off in the corner.  Next we received a tour of the cellars and learned more about the wine-making process. 

The Cellars

We were escorted into the restaurant on the premises, which was very elegant. We sat at round tables of eight.  We ended up sitting with four girls who were on holiday from studying abroad in Rome, although they normally attend school in Florida.  Also at our table was a couple that we got to know fairly well.  Jack and Vanessa were from Calgary, Canada, and we ended up having a lot in common. They were a very nice, fun couple with many of the same interests as us.  In fact, Jack is also a fifth grade teacher so we had many stories to share!  It was interesting to compare the differences between living and teaching in Canada verses the states.  He informed us that teachers with my experience and education make an average of $120,000 per year! He almost convinced us that moving to Calgary would be an excellent move... 

The wine tasting at Castello Verrazzano! 

The restaurant at Castello Verrazzano

The wine tasting was excellent!  We tasted several different Verrazzano wines, as well as their grappa in coffee (yikes!). That stuff is SO strong! They also served us a traditional Tuscan appetizer which included several different meats, salamis, pecorino cheese, homemade honey and balsamic vinegar, and bread.  Evidently one of the meats provided was wild boar, but I have no idea which one it was. Vegetarian plates were also available upon request.  I was looking longingly at the fresh cut veggies on the plate across from the table from me.  They looked so good and refreshingly different. 

Traditional Tuscan appetizer

We were at Castello Verrazzano almost three and a half hours!  (Many people left about an hour earlier, but we were so wrapped up in our wine and conversation!) We bought a bottle of their rose and headed back to our room at Casa Nova La Ripintura in the mid-afternoon and proceed to drink more wine on our terrace until we were nice and toasty.  We had great conversation as we relaxed. 

Later that evening we again walked into town and headed to the co-op one last time to stock up for our train ride tomorrow- Pringles and pineapple juice. We ventured through the scenic piazza and then headed to dinner at our favorite spot- La Bogetta del Moro.  It was just so good. Again, we split the bold bruschetta.  We then shared the wonderful lasagna and the risotto with saffron and zucchini. It was all excellent as usual. 

We walked back to the agriturismo, fed the ducks and nutria once more, and eventually went to bed. It was a very hot and uncomfortable night. 

Tuscany Region: Chianti Reviews

Reviews for lodging, restaurants, and services in the Chianti region of Italy in July 2012. 


Casa Nova La Ripintura, Località Uzzano, 29  50022 Greve In Chianti, Province of Florence, Italy
I found this place several months ago when researching an agriturismo to stay at in the Chianti region.  Overall, we really enjoyed our stay here. It is seemingly isolated up on a country road, but within a ten minute walk of the town of Greve in Chianti.  This was particularly nice because we could easily walk into town for dinner or drinks.  We stayed on the top (second) floor of the main house which hosted several rooms in a bed and breakfast.  The room was very "Tuscan" country with a cozy feel.  The bathroom was very spacious and very updated.  The room had a door out to a rooftop terrace shared by only one other room. It was nice to sit out here and enjoy a bottle of wine or snacks, and gaze at the stars.  The owners were very cordial, but speak somewhat broken English, although this was never a problem.  They keep to themselves unless you choose to start up a conversation.  There are a few dogs and cats on the premises, but they are never a problem.  In fact, we enjoyed this, as it reminded us of home. We bought several bottle of their wine, which were very good and very affordable.  Be sure to check out their restaurant in town just off of SR 222, La Bottega del Moro!  Excellent food and service- one the best meals we had in all of Italy!  The only issues we had with this place is the lack of air conditioning, but that can be expected in an older house.  However, in the July heat, it was quite hot at night and difficult to sleep. We left the one window open, but then got chewed up by mosquitoes. Our bed was missing some springs in the middle so it was not the most comfortable. However, loved the charm and the breakfasts outside on the back patio. Overall a very good experience and base to explore the Chianti region. 


La Bottega del Moro, Piazza Trieste 1 | Greve in Chianti, 50022, Italy
This place was outstanding! We were recommended this place by the owners of Casa Nova La Ripintura, as they also run this quaint and elegant restaurant.  We ended up going here all three days we were in the area because it was THAT good!  This restaurant was one of our top three in Italy!  On our first night we were there rather early for Italian dinner, but they accommodated us anyway.  We saw the owner arrive with fresh ingredients from the market for that night's dinner. We split a carafe of white wine and a piece of lasagna.  The lasagna was the best I have ever had in my life!  The second time we were there, we again sampled the wine, which was delicious, but this time we went for a later meal and went all out!  We started with a zucchini pie appetizer- this was small, but SO delicious!  It was like a zucchini quiche drizzled with balsamic vinegar.  Then we both shared the ravioli and chicken with capers.  The ricotta ravioli was decent, but definitely not their best meal.  The chicken with capers in a carrot sauce was wonderful!  We weren't even hungry anymore, but decided that the bruschetta looked really good, so we decided to order some. It was by far the tastiest and freshest bruschetta I have ever had.   The owner brought us some complimentary thin fried bread while we waited for our meal although it did not take particularly long. On our third visit )why mess with something so perfect?) we ordered the risotto with saffron and zucchini and the lasagna again and both were excellent. All three times we had excellent and attentive service!  This place is located right on the SR 222 in Greve. Also, VERY affordable. If you are going through- GO HERE!  


Lo Sfizio di Bianci, Via Ricasoli 44/46, Gaiole in Chianti, 53013
We stopped here in between wineries for lunch, as it was one of the only places open in Gaiole during the midday. It has a nice covered patio for seating with shade.  There definitely was more of a language barrier here, but our server tried, as did we.  After further though, I think that our server was still learning the ropes, as she got very flustered as the place filled up quickly.  We ordered water and soft drinks and then split an appetizer if fried dough filled with cheese and wrapped in prosciutto.  This was good. There was a lengthy wait for our food. I had pici- a thick pasta with fresh tomato, bacon, garlic, and parsley. My husband ordered trofie pasta with truffles, however the server only brought mine and we had to wait over 15 additional minutes for his meal.  The food was average. We were getting short on time, as we had a tour scheduled, but still had not had a chance to even ask for our bill, so I eventually went inside to ask to pay and found our server chatting with other employees.  I wanted to pay with credit card, but another server was on the phone and the credit card machine was tied to the line so I just paid in cash so we could get moving.  


Castello di Verrazzano, Via Citille, 32, 50022, Italy
Only a 10 minute drive north of Greve, this castle was a delight to tour. The tour group was a bit large with 30 people.  Our tour guide was humorous and knowledgeable, but a his accent was very thick and hard to understand at times.  We were able to tour the gardens and even see real wild boar, although we only spotted one sleeping. We toured the wine cellars and then were escorted to the restaurant on the grounds, which was beautiful and airy. We were able to sample several salamis, prosciutto, wild boar, pecorino cheese, bread, and homemade honey. They did offer a vegetarian plate as well with several fresh vegetables. We tried several of the their wines, and even were able to sample the sweet balsamic vinegar and a shot of their grappa- liquor made from grapes. We ended up purchasing a bottle of their Rose at the end of the lunch.  The luncheon was very enjoyable.  We sat with 6 others and made new friends! We were there for about a total of 3.5 hours. €28 per person. 


Castello di Brolio (Ricasoli), Gaiole in Chianti, 53013 Siena, Italy
Originally built in 1009 AD, this castle was a very fun excursion!  It has a lot of historical significance, which you learn about on the tour. We were in a small and manageable tour group of about 8 people. Our tour guide, Camila, was fantastic!  She was very knowledgeable. We toured the chapel, crypt, gardens, and the tower.  The actual castle cannot be toured because the family still lives in it during the summer. We saw gorgeous views from the gardens of the hundreds of acres of vineyards and olive trees.  You can even see Sienna in the distance.  We then met down at the winery where we were given a tour of the wine-making facilities, followed by a tasting.  The tasting was very elegant at a banquet table, although you only get to sample four wines. €23 per person.


Casa Emma, SP Castellina in Chianti, 3 San Donato in Poggio , Barberino Val d'Elsa (FI) Italy
We stopped here for a scheduled tasting.  It was  a little hard to find coming from Greve in Chianti, but eventually got there.  It definitely is not as fancy as some of the other vineyards and castles we visited, but we had a very pleasurable tasting with a group of about 8 people.  We made lots of friends!  Our guide, Carlota, was very knowledgeable and friendly.  We also got a short tour of the cellar afterwards by another employee.  This was an interesting first stop.  Try their sweet balsamic vinegar- very good!