I'm making my first trip to Italy this summer, and I'm renting a villa near Montalcino. I love Brunello, and want to visit some of the nearby vineyards/wineries. Does anybody have suggestions on the best places to go? Other suggestions of local interest (e.g., dining) would also be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

There are some threads on this already - do a search.

The ones we liked:
Costanti
Poggio Antico
Soldera (although i don't really know how we managed an appointment there)

Note that virtually all places in Italy require an appointment.

The only place we visited last October was Castello Banfi and we enjoyed it. We made an appointment several weeks beforehand.

As MLV said, make appointments in advance. If the wineries you want to visit do not have a website, you can get most of their contacts from the Gambero Rosso guide. Some do not have published email addresses, so you'll have to phone Italy directly to make the appointments.

I would personally go for smaller wineries, and avoid the large, Disneyworldeske tour bus estates like Banfi.

For dinner, do not miss Re di Macchia in Montalcino, and definately go to Pasticceria Maruccia, as they have the best miglifiole I've ever had.

You can search the forum about Montalcino stuff, as several people have visited over the past couple years, myself, MLV, Jcocktosten, Daniel Fulton, and mwagner in particular.

Thanks for the advice. I've also found some of the prior threads on this topic. I will be traveling with my kids, ages 12 and 9. Do you see any problem with them tagging along to the wineries as I indulge my wine obsession? Or to the suggested restaurants, for that matter?

Mike,
Barbi does tours every hour on the hour, no need for a reservation. Best to call to see if they're closed for lunch, I forget. Banfi is owned by an American family; if your Italian is not so good this could ease the brain after several tours in Italian/broken English. Most of the wineries, like Frescobaldi's Castelgiocondo, are actually unoccupied until harvest.

The best place I ever ate in Montalcino is actually just south of town in Sant'Angelo in Colle, a "suburb" of the town. The restaurant is called Il Leccio. See www.trattoriailleccio.it for some good pics and a sampling of their menu. The food was by far the best I have had in Tuscany; and their wine list has been rated one of the best. Their list of rossos and brunellos is so long you could get lost for days.
Have fun.

Oh,yeah, the only true tasting room in Montalcino is called Osticcio, on the southwest corner of the square. The others are really just stores with a little tasting table in the corner. At Osticcio, you can sit and order several tastes, have a little snack, and order more tastes. And the staff knows their stuff.

I'm not too sure that bringing children on your winery tours would be a good idea. Visits often take at least a couple hours, and you'll get walked through the winery, barrel rooms, etc, before tasting. It's quite possible that your kids could get pretty bored.

Remember that the majority of wineries in Italy do not have dedicated visitor reception staff. They are taking time away from their regular duties at the estate to spend with you.

Mike,

I would add a few suggestions for wineries.

Col d'Orcia is located near Banfi. The property is beautiful and the tastings are great with an appointment. The asst. winemaker is a young man named Bernandino Sani and his English is very good. They produce very nice normale and riservas, along with Olmaia and Nearco (Cab and Syrah based wines). If you enjoy sweet wines, they make a good Moscadello di Montalcino.

Second, I would add Argiano. The estate is located across a small valley from Banfi. Pepe Schib Graciani is the contact person that arranges tours and tastings. Again, the estate is beautiful and has a lot of WWII history attached. They also produce Solengo (great Super Tuscan) and Suolo, as well as the Brunelli.

Lastly, I would recommend Caparzo and Altesino which are located on the Siena side of Montalcino. They are both owned by the Countess Elisabetta Gnudi. Great tastings at both wineries with appointments and Jo is the tour guide (British girl). They will pour both the La Casa and Montosoli. Don't go without an appointment.

I have found that if you arrange things prior to arriving, you will be treated like a king. Just show up and you are a rude american. Take it from me, the king treatment is the way to go if you truly are there for the wines.

Altesino is a lovely property and we had a nice tour there (in addition to those MLV mentioned).

The Fortezza has a real tasting room and is well-stocked although I think their prices are a little high if I recall. Analisa from Costanti hooked us up at the Fortezza and we were not charged and tasted probably 10-12 brunellos. It was sweet. You can find great deals at the stores in town. We tracked down '97 Costanti Riservas for 65E when all of the other stores in town had it for 90-95E if I recall correctly.

Re di Macchia was by far our best meal in the region and I definitely recommend it.

Agree with futronic and Jcocktosten that Re di Macchia is THE place to eat. Also make sure to rent a car and drive around. Guaranteed to be an experience you'll never forget!

Appointments, just as everyone else has said are a must.

Oh and make sure to visit Pienza. I got a couple bottles of wine there at great prices. Just as Jcocktosten mentioned, shop around. Prices can vary widely on the same wine in different shops.

The wife and I were in Tuscany last April and visited Barbi and Poggio Antico while near Montalcino. Both were incredible - Barbi for the more "traditional" Italian experience and Poggio Antico for a more modern approach. Wines were fantastic and the added plus was both had fabulous restaurants. We had lunch at Barbi and enjoyed quite a feast as the waiter brought out samples of what felt like everything on the menu for us! Dinner was at the restaurant next to Poggio Antico (reservations definitely needed) and was probably the most spectacular meal we've had in all the years we've been traveling to Italy. I'd highly recommend both!

quote:

Originally posted by Vino Bevo:
The wife and I were in Tuscany last April and visited Barbi and Poggio Antico while near Montalcino. Both were incredible - Barbi for the more "traditional" Italian experience and Poggio Antico for a more modern approach. Wines were fantastic and the added plus was both had fabulous restaurants. We had lunch at Barbi and enjoyed quite a feast as the waiter brought out samples of what felt like everything on the menu for us! Dinner was at the restaurant next to Poggio Antico (reservations definitely needed) and was probably the most spectacular meal we've had in all the years we've been traveling to Italy. I'd highly recommend both!

* THREAD DRIFT *

Vino Bevo, we're putting together an offline in Fredericksburg in April. Let me know if you're interested.

I've read about them here forever but never had the opportunity to attend. They sound like fun from what I understand - I just may be interested. Details and/or any dates set?

quote:

Originally posted by Vino Bevo:
I've read about them here forever but never had the opportunity to attend. They sound like fun from what I understand - I just may be interested. Details and/or any dates set?

Yep. Saturday, April 22nd in F'Burg. Texas BBQ theme. If you're interested send me an email at joe dot dulworth at airmail dot net and I'll include you on the distribution list.

Dang - I'll be in Austin with some buddies catching the Texas-Nebraska baseball series that weekend. I'll send you an email anyway and maybe I can make another one in the future. I appreciate the invite!

I have children the same age and they are always welcome in wineries. The only problem is they get bored -- as you can imagine. I live 1 1/2 hours from Montalcino.

So, if you want to bring them, no problem. Children are gods in Italy. The same goes for restaurants.

Have a great time. And don't forget to go to Osteria Osticcio (great wine shop and place for salumi and salad for lunch) and say hi to the owner Tullio.

quote:

Agree with futronic and Jcocktosten that Re di Macchia is THE place to eat. Also make sure to rent a car and drive around. Guaranteed to be an experience you'll never forget!

HAHAHA! Driving in Montalcino is quite an experience (although I was just a passenger).

Be sure to post where you end up going.

Fondly recalling my famous 13 point turn.

Welcome to the boards, Mike! Have a great trip to Italy.

I used to bowl with a Mike Jennings. Is this you?

Glen Frederiksen

quote:

Originally posted by mona lisa vito:


HAHAHA! Driving in Montalcino is quite an experience (although I was just a passenger).

You can say that again. We were there during the Sagra del Tordo festival so driving was even more limited, but the morning we left I pulled my little rental into town to load up our baggage. On one of the narrower streets I managed to scratch up the side mirror pretty good since I only had what seemed about 3" clearance on either side.

But it's not a real Italian vacation unless you have at least one "I somehow ended up on this street that got narrower and narrower until I couldn't turn around and just had to drive in reverse" experience.

quote:

Originally posted by gthom:

quote:

Originally posted by mona lisa vito:


HAHAHA! Driving in Montalcino is quite an experience (although I was just a passenger).

You can say that again. We were there during the Sagra del Tordo festival so driving was even more limited, but the morning we left I pulled my little rental into town to load up our baggage. On one of the narrower streets I managed to scratch up the side mirror pretty good since I only had what seemed about 3" clearance on either side.

But it's not a real Italian vacation unless you have at least one "I somehow ended up on this street that got narrower and narrower until I couldn't turn around and just had to drive in reverse" experience.

That is what led to the 13 point turn. I was the driver, MLV was the passenger. It was night, it was raining it was lots of fun.

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'll post my experiences when I return. Sorry, Glen - I'm not your bowling buddy.

I got a private tour of Livio Sassetti's winery. It was myself, my wife, our guide and Livio himself. Just fantastic..

I'm going to be staying at the villa on Livio's vineyard, so hopefully I can get the same tour.