The Chianti

In the heart of Tuscany is the Chianti region. Home to the Chianti Classico variety of wine, vineyards alternate with olive groves everywhere you look. The Via Chiantigiana is the highway that winds its way from village to village in what must be some of the most beautiful and well tended countryside in the world.


	The wine is the thing. Not just the eponoymous Chianti, but the Super Tuscans as well as some nice, refreshing whites (like our new favorite, Vernacchia di San Gimignano) are produced by wineries large and small. The Castello Vicchiomaggio is a noted producer that we paid a call on Friday morning. I took the tasting seriously and came away with a couple of bottles for the effort.

Greve in Chianti is not only the home of the consortium of Chianti Classico producers (members products will display the black rooster logo on their label), but it was the birthplace of Giovanni da Verrazzano The family estate offers tours and produces wine and olive oil for sale.		A statue of the "discoverer" of what became known as New York harbor stands in the main piazza in Greve n Chianti.

	< The main church, Santa Croce, fronts on the ancient marketplace. Even in the fairytale setting of this quaint Italian town, the > mundane chores of the day must be tended to, such as the laundry.
	La Chiesa di Santa Croce in Greve in Chianti.

San Gimignano is often referred to as the "Medieval Manhattan" for all of its stone towers. After walking the streets and peering into the many tourist oriented shops, I began to think of it as a Tuscan "New Hope." Still there was no escaping the warm charm of the stone streets and buildings.

In San Gimignano's Piazza della Cisterna, I waited forever to get a clear shot of the old well head framing the brick building with the marble columns in the windows.	This was a "typical" Tuscan estate we spotted from outside the east wall of town.	After wandering through town, we exited at the south end and followed some footpaths along the outside base of the city wall to get back to our car. We came upon this lovely and inviting staircase at a private dwelling.