[Michael Horne]

Ciao Deb, and thanks for this great write-up on Milano. I have to say, I’m not as experienced cruising Milan as you are, and it’s really nice to have these pointers.

I have visited a few great restaurants there, especially the osterie and trattorie that dot the city. Just for fun, here are three of my favorites. All of them require a quick call for a reservation, and folks staying in Milan can ask their hotel to book them a table:

• Trattoria Mirta, Piazza San MAterno 12, tele: +39.02.9118.0496, http://www.trattoriamirta.it
• Osteria Grand Hotel, Via Ascanio Sforza 75, tele: +39.02.8951.1586, http://www.grandhotelosteria.it
• L’Osteria del Treno, Via San Gregorio 46-48, tele: +39.02.670.0479, no website but email: info@osteradeltreno.it

Buon appetito e buon viaggio!

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Scott — there are a number of producers you can visit that are smaller and have very distinctive styles. I’d suggest some of these to get you started:

• Podere le Ripi — very serious Brunello maker with some amazing natural wines, ask for Sebastian.
• Fattoi — More traditional producer with excellent price/value for their Brunello. I used to import and sell this regularly, they are great producers.
• Il Colle — very small but excellent winemaker.
• Colleoni Marino Podere Santa Maria — another modern natural wine maker producing some amazing Brunelli. Ask for Marino.
• Campi di Fonterenza — Another great option, ask for Francesca
• Paradiso Manfredi — one more to hit if you have time.

Don’t forget that you’ll need to book reservations with these folks, and give yourself at least 90 minutes with each one for a visit. They will take their time and show you *everything* they make.

To find their contact info, just google the name and add “brunello” to the google, like “fattoi brunello”

Happy travels!

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi jengray282 —  you might want to check out this post for some ideas to consider for your trip. You’ll find some winery and restaurant recommendations in there.

Also, John has some good recommendations you might consider as well on his post (scroll down a bit).

My favorite restaurant in Chianti is Osteria Le Panzanelle just outside of Panzano. You can read more about it here. Reservations are pretty much required because it fills up with locals and just a few tourists in-the-know.

For the definitive guidebook on restaurants where the Italians eat, check out my post on Osterie d’Italia here.

Finally, about doing something with kids, the winery tours are probably less interesting to them, but one thing you might consider is renting some bikes from Ramuzzi in Greve, and doing some touring around the area on a bike. They may even have some guided tours, you would need to email or call them (they speak English).

If that’s not enough to get you started, let me know. 😀

Cheers.

Michael

 

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Mary — it looks like I can get this wine for you, and I have an upcoming order planned for March.

I’ll send you an email to get a bit more info, like how many bottles you might want. Given that this is so hard to find & get into the USA, it’s worth stocking up to make it worthwhile.

Chat soon!
Cheers
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Mary — I found Guerrieri online, but I’m not quite sure which wine of theirs that you are referring to.

Are you referring to the Galileo – Colli Pesaresi Sangiovese Riserva DOC shown on their site?

I believe that they do not have a US importer today, but if you’re interested in ordering some wine from them, I can check into availability.

Cheers!
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Robert – sounds like you have a great drive through Chianti planned. If I had to pick just 1 or 2 towns to visit, I'd probably pick Greve and Radda to visit.

For Greve, the town itself is a busy wine hub and there's much to see, good restaurants in and nearby Greve, and lengthy list of things to do. The center of the Greve action is at Piazza Matteotti, and you'll find nearby the tasty Antica Macelleria Falorni (if you like salumi), some great wine shops and artisan goods shops. If you're into history and architecture, you can check out Santa Croce church, the Museum of sacred art (Museo di Arte Sacra di San Francesco), and nearby castle of Montefioralle. In Greve, it's interesting to hit the Wine Museum (Museo del vino) to get a sense of the history in the area (and a great winescrew collection), however I believe it is closed at the moment for restoration. You can check here.

Radda is smaller and more medieval, and drenched with winemaking history. It's nice to simply cruise the central town area. I'd also recommend you check out the oldest winery in Italy (from the 11th century), owned by the Ricasoli family, at Castello di Brolio. If you want to taste some local wines, buy a few bottles, and generally enjoy an enoteca atmosphere, I'd recommend you check out La Bottega di Giovannino in the center of Radda at Via Roma #6 (website here). Nearby Castello di Volpaia is also charming and a great place to sample Volpaia wines.

Regarding wineries to visit, the list is endless. I'd recommend you check out these (click the name for more detailed info):

• Le Cinciole
• Badia a Coltibuono
• Brancaia

If you can make the time work, don't miss lunch or dinner at Osteria Le Panzanelle.

Happy travels.

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Domenic — great to meet you, and welcome! Where in Oregon do you live now? Any chance you’re in Portland? There are some great places & resources for wine lovers in Portland, I’d be happy to send you some.

I found the URL to that producer, and for those reading this, it’s here: http://www.cantinemoio.it/

Domenic, it’s tough to find Moio 57 Rosso here in the States. I check wine-searcher, and it’s not coming up in the US. If you’re interested in buying some, I could check into getting some flown over. Let me know and I can check into it.

Cheers,
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Patrick — welcome and thanks for the post.

That’s a pretty broad question — Are there any specific Tuscan wines you’re looking at? Where’s your interest centered? Chianti, Brunello, Vino Nobile, Super Tuscans?

Also, some interesting maps can be found through Masnaghetti in Italy, you can find out more about his full list of maps here:

http://www.enogea.it/en/product-category/maps/

Cheers!
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Michael — good to meet you!  The downloadable Barolo & Barbaresco maps I referenced above can be printed locally in color, but I have an even better resource for you:

• Check out the fantastic Barolo & Barbaresco maps created by Alessandro Masnaghetti (pronounced “mass-nah-gay-tee”) of Enogea.  He has a very complete set of maps that rival the above maps, and they are readily available for purchasing & shipping.  Alessandro has done years of research to develop these maps.
  • You can find his Barolo map here.
  • You can find all of his other maps of Italian wine regions here.
• Alessandro has a distributor in Hong Kong, so you should be able to buy them locally (saving you a lot of money on shipping).   His main distributor contact points are here, but I’ll list 2 of the important ones:
  • USA:  The Rare Wine Company, http://www.rarewineco.com, sales@rarewineco.com
  • Hong Kong: Ginsberg + Chan, shop.winemerchantsasia.com,  hello@ginsbergchan.com

I hope that helps. Best of luck on your map quest! 🙂

Cheers,

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Michael! I’m going to start a separate topic on Eastern Sicily, because I know that you’re there now and would benefit from some recs. Check the other thread and we can chat there!

Cheers,
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Jade!  I'm happy to help out with some ideas.

Here are a few things to think about on your trip, plus a handful of recommendations. If you need help booking them, let me know and I’ll draft up an example tasting tour + make some introductions to the wineries to get things booked:

• If you want to do a single day of tasting, that’s easy.  I’d suggest 2 wineries in the morning, a nice lunch, and 1 in the afternoon.  You should budget at least 90 minutes per winery visit, as they winemakers are quite excited to share their passion for winemaking.  After 3 wineries and a grand lunch, you’re going to be beat.  Plan on a light dinner.
• I generally recommend small- to mid-size wineries.  The big ones and cult producers are good fun for tasting, but you can miss the ‘human element’ of winemaking when it’s just a corporation pumping out a zillion bottles.
• The Chianti Classico region is the easiest from Firenze (Florence), as it’s a relatively short drive by car to some great producers around Greve in Chianti and Panzano.  Radda in Chianti is a little further down the road, but worth it for tasting some unique higher-elevation wines.
• You will always want to make a reservation in advance of your tasting, as they may have limited time, and they all prefer to do small groups of visitors at a time.
• Here are three wine producers I often recommend for a first hand experience of meeting the winemaker, tasting the wines, and touring the winery:
  • Savignola Paolina: Ludovica (“Ludo”) is kind, gracious, and a darn good winemaker. She and her husband Antonio make a small number of bottles of Chianti in a “classic" Classico style — easy drinking, fairly priced, and delicious.  She’ll give you a tour of the small cantina to taste some wines and her olive oil (if she has any left), and you can check out the grounds. The view of the vineyards from the terrace is lovely.  You’ll find the Savignola Paolina contact info here.
  • Le Cinciole: Another small producer just down he road from the little hill town of Panzano, Luca and Valeria make natural wines, and a good number beyond Chianti Classico. Definitely check out their Petresco wine — it’s made in the Chianti Classico Riserva style, but is one of the top Chianti wines (hence it deserves a special name). Check out Le Cinciole’s contact info here.
  • Badia a Coltibuono:  If you’d like to check out a mid-sized producer that’s pretty well known in the States (and wines readily available), check out Roberto & Emanuela’s “biologico” winery outside of Gaiole in Chianti. They make some delicious wines and have a nice tasting room.  You can read more and book an appointment using my notes on Badia a Coltibuono here.  You would need to book these folks in the afternoon for a tasting visit.
• Here are a couple more that are definitely worth a visit if/when you have time:
  • Tiny producer Altiero just outside Greve makes just 10,000 bottles, and is a gem to visit if you can coordinate a time to visit Paolo.  More info about Altiero here.
  • I love the wines of Val delle Corti in the mountains outside of Radda. Roberto is the winemaker with a good amount of help from his wife Lis. He speaks English perfectly, and might be available for a visit. If you want to visit a Radda producer, these guys need to be on your list.  The Val delle Corti website is in Italian or German, so I’m happy to make an introduction to Roberto.
  • If you want to visit a producer in a grand Villa, check out Cigliano, just outside San Casciano in Val di Pesa.  Very nice wines, with Niccolò as the fanatical winemaker doing some cool stuff with Chianti Classico.  You’ll find the Cigliano website here — let me know if you’d like help making a tasting appointment, I’d be happy to introduce you to Niccolò.
• For lunch on your tasting day, definitely GO GO GO to Osteria Le Panzanelle just outside Panzano on the road to Radda.  This is ultra-local Chianti food, and not many foreigners (except us importers) know about it.  I’m almost reluctant to promote them because they’re so good, and if many travelers find out about them, I won’t be able to get a reservation. 😉  Seriously, you must have a reservation to eat here. Do a lunch and don’t hesitate to splurge on the wine, prices and selection are great.  Read through and book with the information on my travel notes for Osteria Le Panzanelle here.
• For car service, you can use my friend and super-friendly Gionata (and his beloved 8-person mini-van Giove) to cart you around the Chianti Classico landscape, from winery to winery, and at remarkably good prices.  You definitely need to reserve him, and I’d be happy to help you — or you can contact Giona (his short name) directly from the info on his Gio.Ve website.  Giona speaks English very well.

Let me know if i can help you draft up an itinerary, and I’d be happy to do some intro emails.

By the way, would you mind if I posted this thread to my Dall’Uva Forum under “travel itineraries” and mention you?  It won’t use your email address, just a short thread on the topic.  I try to post these things there so others can benefit from collective planning.

Cheers,

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Benny — sorry for the delayed response, but there are some excellent options for delightful places to stay in the center of town.  Given all of the activities in and around the Bologna centro storico, I can’t imagine staying anywhere else.

I look for reasonably priced hotels with great locations and strong reviews from previous travelers. Here are a couple of options worth checking out:

• Il Benvenuto Bologna is a very nice, quaint B&B-style place in the center offers very comfy rooms for about $100/night.  Located at Via Padre Francesco Maria Grimaldi 5, tele:+39 331 840 7119 , website here.
• La Casetta dell’ Artista is a unique B&B-style place decorated by a couple of artists, and offer a rotating art installation each month. Prices are about $90/night.  Located at Via Cesare Battisti 9, tele:+39 324 957 4319, website here.
• If money is no object (about $300/night for 2 people), then I’d highly recommend staying at Grand Hotel Majestic Gia Baglioni, Via Indipendenza 8, tele: +39 051 225445, website here.

I’ll be passing through Bologna for a night on July 4th, if you’re in town then let’s meet up for coffee!

Cheers.

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao John — sounds like good fun, and I’m sure you will have a great time in Piemonte and Toscana.  A couple of quick comments, then I’ll follow-up with a more detailed list of recs:

• Making Alba your home base is a very good idea; I often stay there in the center of town, as it has some charm, very good restaurants, and many great producers are within a 10-15 mile radius.
• Tackling 2 or 3 wineries per day is probably the right number.  Most Italian producer visits take at least an hour and usually end up being more like 90 minutes.  They’re very proud of their wines and graciously show you around their cantina and estate.  I usually recommend 2 winery visits in the morning (say, 9:30AM and 11AM), followed by a great lunch somewhere nearby at 1PM, then one more winery visit at 4PM.  That is a very full day.
• For finding good restaurants filled with locals (the litmus test for me), I recommend you pick up a copy of Osterie d’Italia 2015 either in my shop, at a bookstore in Italy, or grab the app in the iTunes app store (if you’re a iPhone user).  You won’t go wrong by using this to find some great places to eat while you’re in Tuscany and Piedmont.

Out of curiosity, where are you making your home base in Tuscany?

I’ll pull together some recommendations for you and post them here shortly.  Chat soon.

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Another great recommendation, thanks Laurel!

Cheers

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Nicolas — it’s available in Italy, which makes it hard to get shipped here to the States.  You can contact the folks at the Consorzio or you may be able to find something on Amazon.it (which ships to the States at a fair price).

I did check into buying the 3D versions of the maps (they’re available in Italy and you see them at all of the major winemaker cantinas), but shipping them to the US is terribly expensive.

You may be better off taking the PDF from here and having it printed large at a local Fedex-Kinkos or another printer, then frame that.

Cheers.

Michael

 

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Joe

The topographical map you’re referring to is produced by the Consorzio di Tutela Barolo, Barbaresco, Alba Langhe e Roero, and currently I think that it is not available here in the US. Their website is http://langhevini.it/

It would be a challenge to ship the map, since it would require a large, thin box (kinda like a pizza box) and the expense might be high.

I will check into availability of the map and follow-up; I’ve had a couple of requests for this very special 3D map.

Cheers.
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hey Domenico, I’m checking with a buddy in Italy to see if it’s available and pricing now. I have another order coming up, and maybe I can slip in a few cases if the price works out okay. I’ll let you know shortly.

Cheers.
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hey John — Masnaghetti does have the dedicated Panzano map: http://www.enogea.it/en/product/panzano-2/

I haven't seen his Chianti Classico map up close, you're saying Panzano is conspicuously missing, eh? You're right, that's going to tick off a lot of winemakers in the area. Che strano.

BTW, I've just flown over 10 copies of Masnaghetti's Barolo MGA (the version published & sold in Italy, but with English text) and I will be dropping them into the shop this coming week.

Cheers.

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Domenico — I’m sure I could get it for you direct from their cantina, but air shipping would be pretty expensive and probably push the price up too high, unless I ordered at least 5-10 cases.

I will be coordinating another air shipment of wines in the coming weeks, and I’ll see if the producer would be interested in selling some to me for distribution here.

Cheers!
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

I’m happy to provide the info, Clemens. We seem to get a lot of google searches for the Sommelier topic coming in the door. 

Are you a Somm? Are you thinking about becoming one?

Cheers.

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Wow Alex, that’s terrible.  I agree, it sounds like ISG may be in financial trouble.

Did you pay ISG the tuition fee of $3500 with a credit card?  If so, you should be able to contest the charge with your Credit Card company, since ISG failed to deliver the services for the money paid.  You could also take them to small claims court, though if they’ve squandered their money it may be tough to get them to pay (though the courts could help).

Some service companies charge fees in advance, and maintain the right to cancel a class if attendance doesn’t turn out to be enough to make it profitable.  However, if it’s their choice to cancel, then they really reimburse their students.

Best of luck getting this resolved, and let me know how it goes. I’m still a big fan of the Court of Master Sommeliers as a superb way to earn your accreditation, though you would have to travel to attend some of the courses.

Another option is to check out the courses taught by David Glancy MS and crew at San Francisco Wine School — they have some good courses of varying lengths, many taught by Master Sommeliers like David.  I think some can be attended remotely.

Cheers
— Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Hi Alex — sorry to hear about the problem getting your money back from ISG. If they cancel a class, they really should provide a refund. I’m guessing they couldn’t get enough people together for the course, and that’s why they cancelled, but if it’s their choice they should refund you.

I did find this link for some WSET courses in Calgary as you mentioned: http://www.finevintageltd.com/wine-courses/calgary/.

The Wine & Spirits Education Trust is a pretty well respected source for getting wine training. As a reference, there’s more info here: http://www.wsetglobal.com/

Cheers,
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Jay — unfortunately, no, I am not aware of Chianti maps with this level of detail publicly and freely available.

However, Alessandro Masnaghetti has some very good maps, and now offers one on Chianti (including the Panzano area) for 7 €.  There’s more info here about his Chianti maps.

Alessandro’s maps can be bought here in the US through Rare Wine Company.  The page for ordering the Chianti map is here.  They cost about $12.95.

Cheers.
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

No worries, Dennis — By the way, you may find this useful: The Barolo and Barbaresco Official Maps from the regional winemaking consortium.  I posted the maps in the Wine Resources section of the Forum, you can freely download them here.

Cheers.
Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Michael Horne]

Ciao Dennis:

For maps and guides to wineries in Piemonte, you have a couple of good options:

• The Slow Food “Slow Wine” guidebook is published in both Italian (~2000 winery listings) and English (~350 winery listings that have wines imported to the US). This is a good reference book for any Italian wine lover, as well as someone planning to visit Italian producers on a trip to Italy. The Italian version is most complete, and you don’t need to know Italian to use it well for planning & finding great wines to try.
  • The 2015 English Version can be pre-ordered, as it is scheduled to be released on February 9, 2015.  I have 20 copies available for pre-order in our Shop.
  • The 2015 Italian Version is available now. I have a few copies available in our Shop.
  • If you have an iPhone, can also get the App version for English in the App Store here.  Note that this is the 2014 English version; the 2015 English version is not out yet.
• Alessandro Masnaghetti, an Italian who has made a life out of making higly-detailed maps of important wine regions like Barolo and Barbaresco, has a line of great iPhone apps for exploring, planning and visiting winemakers in Piemonte.
  • You can get the Barolo App here in the App Store.
  • You can get the Barbaresco App here in the App Store.
  • There’s more info about Alessandro’s great work on his Enogea website here.

I hope that’s of some help.  You can also check out the Vini d’Italia wine guidebooks that are released each year in Italian and English, but I find their less useful for planning (and more for just buying good wines).

Cheers.

Michael

Michael Horne, CS
Los Gatos, CA USA

[Author]

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