PRIVATE TOURS IN TUSCANY

WINE TASTING - TOUR 3 - (full day)

From Florence we pass the famous city of Siena and continue on to imerge ourselves in the splendid Tuscan countryside.  Here we reach the Benedectine Abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore, where you find the Institute for the Restoration of Books.  It is one of the best equipped centers in Italy.  We also find a liquoreria, where distilled liquors with aromatic herbs and antique recipes are still used in production under the watchful eyes of the monks in the Abbey.  After a thorough visit of the convent we drive south into the heart of the “crete senesi” (the gorgeous region filled with cypress trees, fields, livestock, and beautiful scenery), until we get to Castelnuove dell Abate (near Montalcino).   In the lonely Vally Starcia  the abbey of Sant’Antimo emerges.  The convent is a part of an ancient legend.  Basically, the emperor Carlo Magno in 781 wanted to celebrate the fact that he (and his people) was spared from the epidemic plague that hit the area near Monte Amiata.  The abbey represents one of the best examples of Romanesque monastic architecture. After visiting this charming structure, we heard to an agricultural company to taste wine and local products which are famous all over the world. Moving along through the Tuscan countryside, among unforgettable and peaceful scenery, we come to Montalcino – home of the Brunello wine.  This wine is an aristocratic red, produced with the Sangiovese grape. This town revolves around wine and its production.  Its many shops let you taste and buy wine. Here we find the characteristic “Rocca”, an imposing castle with five sides, enclosed by a wall with angular towers. From the top of the hill at 500 meters, it dominates the valleys of the Arbia and Orcia.  In the center of the town, in the Piazza del Popolo, we come to the Palazzo dei Priori (built in the 1300’s) and not far away the churches of Sant’Agostino, Sant’Egidio, and the Duomo (cathedral).

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