Wine, wine and more wine (in other words, heaven)

It’s been too long since I posted about the honeymoon and I’m afraid I’m going to start forgetting things if I don’t get back to it. The last post ended with us returning to Siena from Volterra. Our next day was set aside for exploring probably the most famous wine region of Italy, Chianti.

We got an early start, which was really unavoidable because of all the church bells that seem to ring all the time in Siena. It’s like dogs barking: one starts and then they all go. Having three from a small church right outside of our window didn’t help matters.

We set out north from Siena on a winding road which is basically named the Chianti Highway (I can’t remember the actual translation). I had gotten the hang of driving in Italy a little better so during this drive I was able to take in the scenery a little bit better. It was absolutely stunning. Filming a movie in Tuscany has to be about as easy as it gets for selecting locations. There are so many places where every direction you look there is something picture worthy. Not to mention that the catering table has got to be out of this world.

Our first stop of the day was in Castellina in Chianti. Driving in we went by the huge vats that hold more Chianti than you can imagine. The vats were about as large as a small grain elevator silo back home, but made from stainless steal and full of wine. It was an awe inspiring site to see around 16 of them all lined up.

After finding a place to park we walked in toward the town. There was a street market since it was Saturday. We wandered among the vendors looking at the different produce available. Unfortunately none of it looked particularly fresh due to it being too early in the year. After checking out the stalls and walking inside the outer wall of the town (it was previously a hill fortress as most towns in Chianti seem to be) we felt a bit hungry and decided that today was to be snack day. A snack cart had caught our interest earlier, so we made for it via the main street. After a stop in a wine store that boasted some bottles of Chianti that were approaching 100 years of aging we had some fried polenta (fried mush if you’re from my family, except there wasn’t any maple syrup to be had).

With our munchies satisfied we headed back to the car to continue north. Our guide book told of a store in Greve in Chianti that had over 100 wines available for tasting. This of course piqued our interest but it sounded too good to be true. Obviously it needed to be investigated.

Shortly after parking in Greve our most ambitious hopes were realized. The store was one of the first things we saw. Being the sensible pair that we are, though, we decided that we should have something more to eat before we tackle wine tasting lest we come away sloshed. A square in the center of town had a market open with more food vendors so we got a sandwich and some wonderful fried vegetables, mushrooms, and polenta. Fully prepared by the alcohol absorbing grease and carbohydrates we headed for the wine shop.

When you enter the shop there is a display of old tools used in the processing of the wine over 100 years ago. For the most part the wine production before that hadn’t changed very much at all so similar tools had been in use for centuries. After lingering for almost a full minute (come on, there was wine to be had) we made for the wine.

The system for tasting was to buy a card with a certain preprogrammed amount of Euros that was used to dispense the samples. There were several stands spread around the store, each with about a dozen different bottles of wine to taste. Each sample was a certain price depending on the original price of the wine. We got about eight or nine samples each on our 25 Euros, which we thought was a pretty good deal. It was especially good because Wife found an incredible wine. It was a blend, and cost more than any wine I’d purchased before, but we think it was worth it.

Overall we thought that kind of place was an absolute gold mine. First, you let people have a lot of different, good wines for which they still pay. After five or six tastes they’ll probably buy at least one bottle. Overhead can’t be that much since the samples don’t come free. Wait; forget I said anything about that. It’s a horrible idea.

After spending all our money (or at least all we were willing to spend) on wine, we decided we had better cut our losses and head back to Siena. We spent the evening at the main piazza having pizza for dinner while watching people pass by. A very nice end to our wine adventure.

Cheers,
Frog