Tuscany Tours
Siena, San Gimignano, Monteriggioni | Arezzo, Montepulciano, Cortona | Pienza, San Quirico D'Orcia, Bagno Vignoni, Montalcino | The Chianti Area | Volterra, Pisa and Lucca

Tour of the Chianti Area.

Its natural environment is its fortune: Chianti is a splendid countryside which stretches from Florence to Siena, over great expanses of vineyards resting on the hillside from where the famous red wine is exported throughout the world. The region's game dishes of wild boar, quail and pigeon accompanied by wild mushrooms are as famous as the area's cold meats, Chianina beef and Cinta Senese pork. The countryside is also characterized by its olive groves which produce a highly acclaimed oil. The Chianti region comprises numerous towns, all once Medieval settlements, with castles, villas, old mills, fortifications and farmsteads. Among the popular events, the Palio horse race of Siena is perhaps the best known, although the numerous smaller scale wine Festivals, markets, and concerts organized in the castles should not be missed.. Chianti is an unspoilt land with a patchwork of meadows and fields where the famous blue-violet Iris grow wild, (the flower which was chosen as symbol of Florence and used for centuries in perfumes). Articles in Terracotta are still produced by local craftsmen.

Suggested tour of 1/2 day’s from Rome, with the visit of the territory of Chianti and the cities of Castellina in Chianti, Greve in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti and Radda in Chianti, the service is driver/guided and is individually personalized.
Castellina in Chianti:
Is a municipality of c. 2,800 inhabitants in the province of Siena, in the region of Tuscany located about 35 km south of Florence and about 15 km northwest of Siena. It is part of the Chianti Hills, between the valleys of the Arbia, Pesa and Elsa rivers.History the first settlements in the area dates from the Etruscan age, and they were probably devastated by.Gaulish invasions at the time of the latter's invasions against Rome In the early Middle Ages the town was known as Salingolpe; in the 11th century Matilda of Tuscany gave it as fief to the counts Guidi and, subsequently to the Trebbio. In the early 15th century it became a strong fortress, of which today the Rocca remain. To day Castellina is one of the most popular Chianti towns and export great quantity of wine, and import vast quantities of tourist.		 The Chianti area
Greve in Chianti:
The old name was Greve; in 1972 was renamed Greve in Chianti after the inclusion of that area in the Chianti wine district is a town and municipality in the province of Florence. Sitting in the Val di Greve, it is named for the small, fast-flowing river that runs through it, is the principal town in the Chianti wine district which stretches south of Florence to just north of Siena. Until recently it has been a quiet, almost bucolic town because it was, and still is, well off the main roads. Even in ancient days Greve was not isolated because it was well-connected by secondary roads to the via Volterrana and via Francigena Nowadays, it is connected to the A1 superstrada between Florence and Rome and the main road between Florence and Siena. The old road network ensured easy access to Florence and to other places such as Figline where its tradesmen and farmers found ready markets for their goods and produce. The modern transportation network connects it to the world at large, enabling it to export great quantities of wine, and import vast quantities of tourists.		 The Chianti area
Gaiole in Chianti:
Is a municipal territory in Tuscany, that extends between the hill country of Chianti and the hills of the Val d’Arbia. It had its origins in mediaeval times as the market to the Castles of Vertine and Barbischio, and became the seat of a comune with the Leopoldian reforms in 1774. First mention of the Gaiole territory comes from 1086 in an act of donation from the nearby. Abbey of Coltibuono. However, it was only at the end of the 12 C that the village of Gaiole began to develop on the road which runs from Valdarno to Chianti, as a place of exchange for the nearby castles, and it was recorded in a document dated 1215 as a market. With the foundation of the Chianti League by Florence in the middle of the 13 C, Gaiole was affirmed as capital of one of the Terzi "Thirds" (the others were Castellina in Chianti and Radda in Chianti), representing an important military base for Florence, from the middle of the 1400s until the Florentine conquest of the territory of Siena. In the territory of Gaiole there are still imposing castles of extremely ancient origin: Brolio, owned by the Firidolfi-Ricasoli family since 1172 and completely reconstructed in 1564; Montegrossoli and Meleto castles, this was also for a time owned by the Firidolfi; and also the noted Abbey of Coltibuono, one of the most important Vallombrosan centres of the region, founded in the 11 C and in 1810 becoming a privately owned farm. The American magazine Forbes named Gaiole number one in its list of Europe’s Most Idyllic Places To Live. Each Year generally in October, a race is held, known as L’Eroica.		 The Chianti area
Radda in Chianti:
This village is situated on a hill covered with woods and extensive vineyards forming the watershed between the Pesa and Arbia valleys. Formerly belonging to the Guidi family, it came under Florentine control in 1203. After being fortified in 1400 it was, from 1415 onwards, head of the League of Chianti, and it preserves the remains of its ancient walls. The structure of the medieval village is still intact; it grew up elliptically around the church of San Nicolò, of 14th century origin and the Palazzo Pretorio. Built about 1415, its facade adorned with the coats of arms of the podestà (chief magistrates), the latter is now the seat of the municipality. Just outside the village, in the Vignale farm, are the headquarters of the Chianti Classico consortium (its symbol is the black-cockerel, the former emblem of the League of Chianti), and the Centro di Studi Chiantigiani (Centre for Chianti Studies), founded in 1984, with a small library and an archive devoted to the history of Chianti and its agriculture. The Montevertine farm, near the village, houses the small Museo del Chianti, with displays relating to the farming community.		 The Chianti area