We had such an amazing experience at this winery despite not planning ahead. I didn't realize that…read moremost wineries in Tuscany cater to tour busses and reservations rather than operating on drop-in visitors like those we've been to in NZ and the states. We looked up their hours online and saw they opened bright and early. Great, we thought, we needed to be out of Rome early so let's have wine for breakfast. We arrived and drove into the picture-perfect quintessential Tuscan winery. Olive trees line the gravel road leading to the vineyard and tasting room. We were immediately greeted by feline guardians who purred and approached us for petting. The owner of this family-owned winery greeted us perplexed on what we were doing there at 10 am. Despite catching him unaware and preparing for a big tour group later in the day, he was incredibly welcoming and hospitable! He took time to show us the barrel room, tasting room, and give us the general tour. He apologized for needing to run into town to get ingredients for the lunch he was hosting and set us up with a half a bottle of wine and snacks where we could pet the cats and enjoy the morning on our own. It was beyond generous and a truly incredible experience to get to enjoy the quiet morning petting cats and sipping wine and listening to the happy voices of his child waking up in the apartment upstairs. It was really magical. I can only imagine the type of host he is when he's prepared for you! Definitely don't miss this place on your visit to Tuscany.

The drive up to this place is so beautiful. We arrive and were taken on an outdoor and inside…read moreyour. We got to see an ancient cave where the wine barrels are kept. Then we got to try some local cheeses and meats along with their very nice wines. Would definitely return to see this lovely place again.

We were treated as kings and tasted the modt renowned wines…read more Their grounds and wine cellar is a absolute dream, you wander through the courtyard and feel like a contessa

Really wonderful tour! Such a fascinating history and wine cave. Our guide was very funny and super…read moreknowledgeable. We did the 6 glass tasting at the end, which was a good way to try many of their award winning wines. Light snacks were served with the wine as well. Highly recommend checking this tour and tasting out.

Wonderful side trip!…read more I discovered the De Ricci winery through travel friends who invited me on this enchanting tour, found on TripAdvisor for $31. I learned about the wine, the Etruscan history in Tuscany, and got to visit an ancient underground Etruscan temple! The wines offered during the tasting were lovely, most of them made with the sangiovese grape family. Fun fact: What animal is on the wine label? If I were to do this again, Id choose the other package on Trip Advisor for $39, as that included a sommelier. As this was, we were left to our own devices. Still fun but not completely satisfying. The little town of Montepulciano has an interesting history, as explained by our Montepukciano De Ricci wine tour guide. I wont share because its definitely part of the fun of the visit. The tiny town has a marvelous chocolate shop, museum and s tower which you can climb (only 75 steps!) and take incredible photos of the Tuscan countryside.

This place was Magnificent! The entire staff were so accommodating and friendly. They made us feel…read morelike we were family here. The food was so delicious and fresh! Each special dish was served and we were allowed to hear the history of its creation through the families remarkable creativity. What a joy it was to be presented with such delicious treats from such Gracious Hosts. Thank You!

We had the most amazing private tasting at Acquaviva! First: the grounds of this vineyard are…read moreabsolutely gorgeous; we enjoyed wandering around and taking in all the scenery. Second, the main tasting building is absolutely lovely - all glass (for those aforementioned views) and a perfect mix of modern and traditional. Finally, the WINE! Not only was their wine absolutely delicious, but it was paired with some excellent bread, olive oil, and charcuterie to complete our tasting experience. Our host was incredibly knowledgeable and friendly and it was a treat to learn about the history of these great winemakers. We loved everything so much we immediately bought bottles to take home for dinner and shipped a crate home, too. One of our favorite afternoons of our entire trip to Tuscany.

I had my first brunello ever 40 years ago that was their first vintage and fell in love with the…read morestyle. Visiting was a highlight for me made even better by my tasting with Lisa, who was very informative. She has been with Banfi for 24 years. I opted for the higher end tasting, which was the correct thing to do for me. Lisa also recommended a bird identification app produced at Cornell University that is quite comprehensive. That recommendation was prompted by a question about a flurry of activity of a species related to the swallows that used to dominate San Juan Capistrano.

Went here for a VIP tour. The tour start with a lunch in their taverna. The food was amazing. We…read morehad a full four course meal with a "cheese ball" starter, pasta as prima and veal as secondi with icrecream for desert. We have a great sampling of the vines from Banfi with the meal and great service. After the meal we went on a tour of the Banfi winery and ended up with a tasting. Our guide Paul did a fantastic job. This is a major brunello provider that goes back to 15th century with beautiful views. We loved the experience.

Wow. One of the most beautiful places on the planet. We were in the area to go to another winery…read morebut they were closed because it was the off season but we saw their sign and decided to give it a try. We met the owner who spoke very little English but his beautiful and brilliant daughter helped us bridge the language gap for the tasting. The wine was exceptional and we bought two bottles at a very reasonable price. This is a authentic small winery for the true Italian family experience. Don't miss this gem if you are in the area.

Thanks to Jacqueline and her review we found ourselves driving down one of the most beautiful…read moreplaces I have ever seen on our way to TanaGatta. We were welcomed right away by Susana, the owner, who led us to the cantina. After a very warm welcome she led my wife and I down to the winery. Since this was our first time ever in a winery she explained the whole process in italian while my wife translated for me. It is inspiring to meet people with passion and love for what they do like the owners of this place. She offered us cheese and cold cuts while we tried the delicious wine and amazing olive oil. Needless to say we walked away with bottles of each but never felt pressured to buy, even though who wouldn't after trying their wonderful products. Do yourself a favor and make the drive, the city center is not that far away and you will fall in love with the place.

The owner and winemaker, Paolo Montioni, and his wife met us upon our arrival with warm welcomes…read moreand gave us a quick tour of their olive harvesting and olive oil production. We lucked out to be here during their olive oil season. We then started a private wine tasting with Paolo to taste 5 of his wines and 2 olive oils on toasted breads (bruschetta). It was only €10! He was such a great host! Nothing beats having the owner and winemaker lead these wine tastings. It was informal and fun. He even made lunch reservations for us at a nearby restaurant. And lunch at the restaurant he booked us in was fantastic too! We all loved his wines and ended up ordering 6 cases to be shipped home.

We visited Montioni Frantoio e Cantina with family members on our last pre-COVID trip to Italy…read more Here we enjoyed a fabulous food and wine tasting -- our pranzo (mid-day meal that day). Paolo Montioni is an excellent host! Their Umbrian wines and olive oils are excellent. I have also ordered wine by email from Montioni for delivery at home. The process was easy, invoiced and paid through PayPal, and shipped to my front door. As Paolo last wrote to me: "We are safe and we are working very hard ......the Nature is outstanding in this moment." We look forward to our next visit to Montefalco and Montioni!

Wow! This was one of our highlights from our trip to Italy…read more This is a small vineyard where we had a lovely winetasting outside with some cheese, bread and homemade olive oil. If you are visiting Umbria, this must be on your list!

From the owner: Terra di Santi is a small , organic, family winery in the center of Umbria. Our focus is on small…read morebatch, high quality production in limited quantities. We are very passionate and serious about our little project. This is more than a business for us. What started out as a challenge has truly become a way of life. We love this land. The hills and bumps and rocks are memorized in the souls of our feet. We want to develop and capture the best of what this land has to offer and trap it into a bottle.