Ciao Laurync:
I think you have a reasonable outlook on what you can accomplish in a day. 2-3 wineries in a day is plenty, the visits tend to last much longer than winery visits at American wineries.
Here’s a simple itinerary that will give you a good taste of the wines around Panzano in Chianti, as well as a great osteria you can visit during the lunch hour, all right in the heart of Chianti. You can start earlier than my proposed time of 11 AM, but you may want to start your morning slowly. Tuscany has a way of making you want to take it easy in the mornings. 😉
I’ve proposed some visit times below, but you’ll need to book a reservation at each of these 3 places. The owners of all of these places speak English very well. For all the info you need to know about the winery (location, hours, how to make a reservation), just click on the name. Give yourself about 60-90 minutes per winery, and a solid 2 hours for lunch. In Italy, that is very normal.
If you’d like me to help you book the reservations, just let me know which day/times you want.
- Le Cinciole winery (Panzano): 11 AM – 12:30 PM Appointment (90 minutes)Luca and Valeria Orsini lovingly tend the vines and produce truly outstanding natural wines at their Le Cinciole winery just outside the hill town of Panzano in Chianti. The vines & olives are tended naturally with a focus on sustainability, and has earned them extraordinary recognition and awards, year after year. They produce the traditional Chianti Classico in normale and riserva vintages, as well as a Supertuscan and a tiny production Rose you can only find in Chianti.
Le Cinciole contact information - Osteria Le Panzanelle restaurant (between Panzano & Radda): 1 PM – 3 PM lunch (2 hours)This is one of my favorite Osterie in all of Tuscany, known and frequented by the locals but very few tourists know about it. The dishes and wines at Osteria Le Panzanelle are truly Tuscan, with recipes from the immediately surrounding area. In the summer months, they serve wonderful dishes from local vegetables, and if you’re daring, you can order the Bistecca Fiorentina — a 3 to 5 pound T-bone of local Chianina beef. Of course, the wine list is outstanding with great variety and fair price.
Osteria Le Panzanelle contact information - Savignola Paolina winery (Panzano): 3:30 PM – 5 PM Appointment (60-90 minutes) Ludovia (“Ludo” among friends) Fabbri carries on the family tradition of Chianti Classico winemaking at Savignola Paolina started long ago by her rather gifted great-Aunt Paolina. Ludo produces wines that embody local traditions and are easy drinking with dishes from the countryside. She produces a normale and riserva Chianti and a Supertuscan that are balanced, aromatic and delicious. Ludo will provide a tour of her modest cantina and offer a panoramic view & tour of her vineyards.
Savignola Paolina contact information
If you’d like an additional winery to visit, you could do 2 in the morning and 1 in the afternoon — just let me know and I can suggest another.
The best days to do Wine Tasting is during the week and sometimes on Saturday. Sundays are tough, but some places will open up for you if you make a reservation.
Best of luck, and have fun on your Self Guided Wine Tasting!
Cheers
Michael
Los Gatos, CA USA
