Everything You Ever Wanted To Know About Tuscan Wine…But Were Afraid To Cask
Written by Jaillan Yehia
Tuscan wine in Siena
I’ve been asked the same two questions consistently since I began travel writing.
Firstly: How do you make money?
Secondly: What’s your favourite country?
The answer to question 2 is Italy! (question 1 would take more than a single word to answer!).
It may be an utter cliche to say that the best things about Italy are the food and wine, but the reason cliches exist is usually because they are true.
The Enoteca Italiana in Tuscany
When it comes to tasting Italian wine, you simply can’t go wrong with a visit to Tuscany. Or like the 4,999 other tourists a month, a trip to one of Tuscany’s most stunning cities: Siena.
The UNESCO hill town is home to the largest collection of Italian wine in the world at the Enoteca Italiana – and serious wine buffs will want to fit in a pilgrimage to the birthplace of Italy’s most famous viniculture export, Chianti Classico, by visiting Chianti producers all of whom are based between here and Florence.
Siena at sunset
Serious Tuscan wine buffs be warned: you’ll undoubtedly leave clutching bottles of your perennial favourite (and new favourite) vinos and vintages – perhaps a Brunello di Montalcino or even Bolgheri Sassicaia for real connoisseurs.
You may also find yourself spouting some seriously interesting statistics once you arrive home – my favourite being that an estimated 10% of the entire population if Italy works in the wine industry. How many countries can say that? (*goes to Google the statistics for France…*)
A wine worth seeking out
Here in Tuscany there’s something to entertain every type of wine enthusiast – tech fans can discover the QR codes which enable you to scan your tipple for plenty of additional info on everything from price to production levels.
While historians wine will delight in the stories of early wine consumption – wine as we know it was only invented along with the creation of glass bottles – prior to this is was consumed from terracotta bowls, where the thick wine paste was mixed with water along with a syrup made from honey, sugar and spices, more akin to the drink we now know as a spritz.
San Gimignano
And finally if you’re looking for that last sweet morsel to round off your Tuscan wine experience, take a trip to the incomparably adorable San Gimignano, possibly my favourite little town in the entire country – and pick up the local Vin Santo dessert wine, or even better settle down at a pavement cafe and enjoy your Tuscan wine alfresco.
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