Tuscany Trips and Treats
Favorite Destination: Greve, about 45 minutes south of Florence.
Where we stay: Il Santo, A small winery with four inexpensive apartments with wonderful views on a hill above the village of Greve. We prefer the apartment named Girosol (“facing the sun”) with a large downstairs kitchen, a large upstairs bedroom, and a small bathroom with a shower. The view from the kitchen window is stunnin, but we often eat at a table outside. It’s just a ten minute walk to the village square. Alessandro Turchi is a superb host and speaks excellent English.
Where we park: A creek flows through the village and on the side of the creek away from the businesses there is a free parking lot. Walking bridges take you from the lot to the village square.
Parking Tip: Yellow lines indicate spaces reserved for residents. Blue lines are paid parking. Look for a nearby box where you can buy time. Put the receipt on your dashboard. White lines indicate free parking.
Where we eat
Mangiando Mangiando, in the village square. We shared a salad, had two entrees and a half litre of the house chianti classico for one meal on our last trip. Total bill was 42.50 euros.
Nerbone di Greve, in the village square. Sit on the second story balcony overlooking the square. No house wine, but a glass of Rosso was only 3.5 euros.
LaBottega in Volpaia, about a 30 minute drive, the least expensive of our favorite restaurants with great food. The view from the outside dining area is stunning.
TavernodelGuerinno, in Montefiarello, on the hill above Greve. The first place we enjoyed pear, pecorino cheese, and a sauce with walnuts for dessert. Lin now makes it at home!
Osterio Alla Piazza, Catellina in Chianti, 0577-733580. Ask Alessandro for directions. This is our special place. Superb food, but higher priced. Sit in one of the two rooms down on the right.
Eating Tips: House wines are almost always superb. Tips are not generally left by Italians, but we do leave small tips anyway. Bring your own coffee on the trip unless you love espresso.
Shopping: there is a great grocery store, the Co-op, and shops selling fresh pasta, vegetables, fruits, cheeses, meats, baked goods, and gelato. The pasta man’s shop, Pasta D’Autore, is just outside the village square and is closed on Sundays and Mondays. Our favorite vegetable stand, Coccia Alessandro, is in a street off the square. Our favorite wine shop is Enoteca del Chianti Classico in the village square (huge selection of reasonably priced wine and olive oil).
Favorite foods: Tagliatelle with any ragu sauce and with white truffle sauce, Pepperdelle with wild boar sauce, tomato soup (George), any ravioli (Linda), Risotto with pecorino and sausage, Torte del Nonna, Insalata mista with tomatoes, and don’t miss the Gelato!
Favorite Local Winery: Terre di Melazzano, a short walk above Il Santo, where the Chianti Classico named Elikia is our favorite.
Favorite Event: Every Saturday morning the village square becomes an open-air market offering everything from shoes and hardware to fresh veggies and awesome meats and cheeses. Don’t miss the scrumptious roasted pig sandwich.
Rental Cars: We always use Auto Europe which has an office in Portland, Maine. Exceptionally good service. I always rent a small car with stick-shift. Parking spaces are tiny. Driving in Italy is a blast! Lots of curves – some have mirrors so you can see if anyone is coming. Italian drivers cut all the corners – a bad habit I brought home with me! Auto Europe, 39 Commercial Street, Portland 207-842-2000.
Gasoline Tip: It took me a long while, and with some help from local folks, to master the self-service gas pumps. You insert money or a credit card, punch the number of your pump, and you are ready to fill the tank. You can choose any of the selections (diesel or super – we used super). The gas stops when you have spent your cash of when the tank if full if you used a credit card.
Money Tip: You can get euros quickly from an ATM, so you won’t need to have them before you arrive. We now have a stash of euros, both paper and coins, so we can get out of the airport and on our way without using the airport ATM. It’s best to use ATMs at banks.
Favorite Day Trips
Montelchino: a delightful hill town of stunning vistas, lots of wine tasting shops focused on Brunello. It’s about a 90 minute drive from Greve.
St. Michels, about a 25 minute ride up Il Santo’s road. Beautiful old church and great hiking trails. We saw a family of wild boars here.
Drive to Agricola Querciabella (a very fine winery) near Greve, and hike up the road to Ruffi, a small village of beautiful private homes and stunning views of our valley. Linda found and entire field of wild fennel and grabbed some for our lunch.
We often choose a gravel side road on the hills that surround Greve, park and walk the road. Amazing what you see and experience! Sometimes we’ll take a picnic with us. A favorite hike takes you from the village square up to Montefierello.
Castellini, about a 20 minute drive. We park in a lot outside the village and walk in, but there is also free parking to the left in the middle of the business district. Good wine shops, restaurants, and a beautiful church.
San Gimignano, a 60 minute drive and favorite tourist attraction with many historic towers. We like Volterra better, just beyond San Gimignano. It is also a hill town with towers but less of a tourist attraction.
Monteriggioni, a 45 minute drive and one of our favorite ancient small hill towns. We once stayed in a beautiful apartment here.
Parking Tip: Free parking is often found outside the walls and business districts, if you don’t mind a short walk. It can be really difficult to find parking inside the walls and near the shops.