Day 5: Firenze and Chianti

When you travel to Italy, there are three things that transcend all other needs and desires to see. I am of course talking about the “other” holy trinity of Pizza, Pasta, and Wine! Approaching our fifth full day in this country, we have had approximately 8 pasta dishes, 10 different pizza varieties, and enough wine to make Bacchus, the roman god of wine, blush. 

But upon arriving in Florence, which is located in the heart of the Tuscan wine region that produces Italy’s best and most famous wines, we took things to another level and went on a full day wine tour with Tuscany Wine Tours through a sub-region known as Super Chianti. Our guide, Tom, was a 7 year native of Florence, who moved from London to pursue a Sommelier course for three years. He decided to stay for the same reason any one moves to Florence and stays, at least based on the movies I have seen, LOVE!!! He story was a little different in that his fiancee is Mexican and they met in an English Pub, and they were going to Mexico to get married. 

We began our tour just outside Florence with two other couples, one from Taiwan about our age, and another younger couples from Hong Kong who just got married in November and were on their honeymoon. Both seemed quite nice, but were content to talk to themselves for the most part (other than the questions peppered by the basketball fan from Taiwan about Michael Jordan who practically wanted MY autograph once he found out I grew up in the same city as MJ), so Lauren and I talked to Tom for the most part. He was able to tell us not only all about the wine, but the culture that surrounded it in Italy, such as drinking and driving compared to US/UK, acceptable levels of intoxication, and the prominence of hand gestures and horn honking by Italians...all critical topics to learn about.

We first visited a winery in the Chianti region that had been family owned for centuries, and specialized in not only wine, but extra virgin olive oil and cheese making. The cheese was made using sheep’s milk from their 598 sheep (apparently two recently wandered a little too far off the broken path and onto the cemented car path…). We walked through the intricacies of the planting, pruning, harvesting, and “fertilization” of the vineyards, as well as the different levels of wine that can be produced. The farm only employees 6 full time employees for all their production, though they will usually have friends and family join for the wine harvest, which will only last 2-3 weeks.

Italian wine can fall into one of four categories, which are loosely tied to wine quality. Table wine is at the bottom, which has no regulation and can be made from blending any grapes and any vintage together. Cheap, but usually good enough to enjoy at dinner if you aren’t too much of a wine snob, and served in carafes as they usually aren’t bottled individually. Next is the IGT, which is what most wineries produce as their lower level product. Similarly lesser regulation, it must be monitored in its blending to ensure consistency, but still has no rules as far as what grapes can be used. Following is the DOC wines, which in the Chianti region must contain 50-60% of the Sangiovese grape (the grape that makes Chianti what it is), and follows some rules for handling to qualify. Finally is the DOCG, the crème de la crème of Chianti wines, of which only 43 of the 360 regional wineries qualify. Not only must these wines contain 80% Sangiovese grape, but they must follow strict rules for handling. Irrigation must be natural, relying on early spring rains to grow the roots and hot dry summers to make the best grapes. No fertilizer can be used, but I put it in quotations earlier because they can naturally fertilize their vines by planting Fava Beans between the rows and tilling them into the soil in early summer. Like most legumes, fava beans act as a natural Nitrogen replenisher to keep the soil fresh and fertile. Finally, all harvesting and processing must be done by hand, though machines like stem removers and mixing tanks are ok to use for the more mundane parts. Now even though these guidelines are only required for wines to be marked DOCG, most of the farms take pride in following the same steps as their fore-fathers and follow these regulations for every plot of vines, from Table wine to DOCG.

So after enjoying the cheese, EVOO, and wine from the first farm, we were off to our next stop. On the way, Tom pointed out a new vineyard built only 10 years ago that was completely underground, at a full modern $150M facility built into the hillside with top of the line automation and processing. Unfortunately we didn’t stop there, but as Bob Dylan said, “the times they are a changin”, so hopefully the changes stay within that underground bunker and don't effect the traditional wineries. We continued on to the small town of Panzano, where we met a famous butcher Dario Cecchini, a vibrant gregarious character that was constantly singing and dancing to the Italian music blaring overhead, while hacking away at his meat with a skill so evident he hardly needed to look where he was cutting. While waiting to eat at his restaurant, the girls that worked there were passing out wine and bread with EVOO and spreads to enjoy, leading to a rambunctious but friendly atmosphere where the locals clearly visited daily. Once our table was ready, we traveled down into a cellar to eat at a family style table with a local family, and then the food came. Fava beans and fresh veggies to start, but then endless plates of 4 different varieties of beef, from rare roast beef to braised and shredded shoulder, hands down the best meat spread I have ever encountered (sorry Midwood Smokehouse). Of course more wine to wash it down (seriously, if table wine is this good why even bother with the pricier stuff???) and the plates kept coming until you had to decide whether to keep eating or just succumb to the food coma in happiness. After lunch you had the choice of coffee, or a shot of Grappa with Dario. Easy choice, made easier by Dario walking around blaring his “Grappa trumpet” to invite anyone else who wanted/dared to join. Grappa, for anyone who hasn’t had it, is like the bastard child of vodka and tequila made from the leftover grape skins after fermenting the wine. Yum?

Back in the van more content than we got out, and onward to the next vineyard, Poggio al Sole, or “Hill in the Sun”, which is located in the Chianti Classico region (not to be confused with the Chianti region). The owners stemmed from a long line of Swiss wine makers, and though they had only bought the property 20 years ago, the buildings and area had stood since at least the 1700’s, and was likely used to grow grapes for over 700 years. With such big shoes to fill, the husband and wife owner, with Catherine handling the business and tours and her elusive husband handling the wine making, gladly rose to the challenge, producing 100,000 bottles a year of which 80% are exported around the world (still considered a small vineyard somehow…). We again toured the facilities, which was decked out with solar panels to cool the cellars and pallets of new vines to plant later in the week, then sat down with Catherine and tried 3 of their wines; one that was not a Chianti, one DOC Chianti Classico of 90% Sangiovese, and one DOCG Chianti that was 100% Sangiovese grape and quite nice to say the least. These Chainti Classico wines are marked with a black rooster, which legend says comes from the winning black rooster in a rooster race (totally a thing) between roosters from Florence and Siena, which mark the top and bottom of the region. The legend is probably a lie, and I am sure each city claims the rooster as their own, but what’s the point of having a good logo if it doesn’t mean anything???

After downing our 6^th and 7^th glasses (or was it 7 and 8? I lost count), we started heading home, making a small pit stop in the quiet town of Greve. Or what is usually a quiet town that had exploded with activity for the Italian holiday of Pasqueta, or Little Easter. A national holiday, it is meant to be spent with family, just relaxing and enjoying food, parades, and open-air markets, of which there were plenty. Each booth was packed with crafts, painting, antiques, and furniture, which I unfortunately couldn’t enjoy because I had to keep a close eye on our wallets. No, not for pick-pockets, but because Lauren had that look in her eye that said “yes, I can spend all our money on these things, we will figure out how to get it home later!” But by using the countless little dogs walking around with their owners to keep her distracted, we were able to safely get back to the van and back home to Florence.

Thanks to the Pasqueta traffic, we got home a little later than expected. So while we were able to see il Duomo and a few other beautiful churches, but couldn’t go inside any. After a quick pizza dinner, we headed back to the hotel to fall face first into bed, and prepare for our trip to Cinque Terre in the morning.

Florence, it was too short, and we will be back, so be sure to stock you wine cellars in preparation!