Northern Tuscany regions

[Krillian]

Hi guys,

I have 4-5 days to spend in northern Tuscany, and looking for some suggestions on locations for good wineries.

I had set my sights on lucca but can't find much around the area. Is there anything along the east-west corridor of lucca to Florence, or will I need to go south of Florence (not preferred).

I will be travelling from la spezia and need to end up in Florence and hence looking around this area.

Cheers for any help

Sam

[Ian S]

Hi Sam
There are some wineries around the Lucca / Colli Lucchesi area, though not big names. Also a selection of unfamous wineries on the route between Lucca and Firenze/Florence (Cappezzana the only famous one I saw on a quick google map search for 'winery near Pistoia' - at Carmignano).

One that might appeal near La Spezia is http://cantinelunae.it/tipologia/vino/cru/#slide-3 with a wide range of whites and reds, quite individualistic, and IIRC is the place that experimented with ageing barrels underwater!

In Lucca, Enoteca Vanni is a very good wine shop, especially if you like old / very old wines. Their cellar out back is well worth setting time aside to browse. Prices are sometimes a little high, but there is value to find there. A proper Aladdin's cave of wine. A friend is off to Lucca in September and I do think it's a fine choice, especially if you want to have that part of the trip without a car.

La Spezia itself has one of the best evening passeggiatas we've encountered, a good example of a nominally humdrum small city excelling in this wonderfully joyous Italian tradition. Head out about 4pm (or when the temperature is cool enough) to enjoy strolling and people watching on pedestrianised streets. Are you staying there or staying in the Cinque Terre? If the latter, and you have good energy, I'd definitely recommend taking one of the walks up into the hills if you find the coastal paths over-touristed. Yes the uphill makes for solid exercise, but you'll see maybe 1/100th of the amount of people you see on the lower paths.

Regards
Ian

[Krillian]

Tremendous help Ian!

Ultimately it will come down to lucca as a general area to visit and enjoy without a world class wine region within adjacent proximity, or to go straight to Florence and head south... my last choice to make to finalise itinery!

PS will be staying at cinque and yes will be walking a lot!

Thanks again for your help

[Ian S]

A tough choice!

To throw in another idea, what about heading due east of Firenze/Florence to Ruffina / Pontassieve / Nippozzano? The middle of these looks like it is on the *train route into Firenze, so gives an option of staying outside Firenze & taking train or bus in, or staying in the city and taking train/bus out. I suggest this as I rather like Selvapiana's wines, and the owner sounds such a character it might be an interesting visit. Other good local producers including the fine value I Veroni.

My personal preference would be to stay outside of Firenze and take public transport in when it appealed, but then I'm mildly allergic to other tourists

Loved the fish / seafood in Cinque Terre, but also the local flatbread (piadina) which was great for taking back to the apartment with some tasty salad / cheese / cured meat etc. It does take a while to get used to the sound of the trains coming through, with their noise really carrying up the steep slopes. However after a couple of days it's even possible to have a lunchtime nap and not be disturbed by it. Also mightily impressed by the effort they are making in recycling / conservation, with ~ 8-10 different recycling bins from memory, and that was maybe a decade ago. My amusing memory of the paths, is the amount of US/English people walking along, trying with varying degrees of success, to say buongiorno and grazie to each other, with barely an Italian in sight. I loved the irony/absurdity, but at least salute them in making the effort.

Regards
Ian

* I checked Trenitalia - every 25 minutes on average, taking 20-30 mins on regionale trains (cheap/simple)

[Krillian]

Ok Ian - all locked in now.

2 days in Florence, staying near the main train station, then onto
4-5 days in lucca, staying in the city, then onto,
2-3 days cinque terra, and then back to
1 night Milan

Thanks for all your tips - I have found the lucca cellars and cannot wait to view/try.. I am loathe to say this in this thread, but.... I have never tried an italian red! Any tips on local wine brands I should look out for whilst I am in florence and lucca? I am open to try anything!!!

Cheers again

[Ian S]

Hi Krillian
Sounds great.

What reds do you like?
- If Aussie Cabernet Sauvignon/Merlot blends appeal, then the super-Tuscans might be a safe bet, though the top ones (Sassicaia/Ornellaia etc) are now very expensive indeed. For more modest wines, look for wine from Cortona which seems to be good for Merlot/Syrah. Also the Maremma, another international grape stronghold.

However many would argue these are international facing wines, not really speaking of Italy. Thus if wanting to explore:
- Don't be afraid to drink the house wines, often palatable / not tricked up like cheap wines elsewhere. They won't be exciting but especially when you don't want a whole bottle, can be useful
- Not many reds made around Cinque Terre, but the whites are worth a go. They do get other wines in (I recall drinking a 1998 Barbaresco (Produttori del Barbaresco) there when we visited). Cantina Lunae worth a look for reds here and in Lucca as (IIRC) they are between the two.
- Chianti is the obvious wine for Florence and Lucca, made principally from Sangiovese, though other local or international grapes can be blended in. Something like Fontodi's normal chianti is a good starter, as the fruit is good but it still remains mostly in character. I really like Selvapiana's Bucerchiale Chianti which is a little more feral. These should be ~ €15-20 in an enoteca shop and maybe €5-10 extra in a restaurant.
- If you like older wines, head out into the back of Enoteca Vanni in Lucca. It is a pretty large selection of wine of all ages, including some pretty ancient stuff. Stuff that would interest me would be (from their website) 2005 Beppe (Giuseppe) Rinaldi Barolo (Brunate - Le Coste / San Lorenzo -Ravera) bith at a meagre €42 each); 2001 Produttori del Barbaresco Barbaresco at €19; Monte Bernardi from Tuscany/Chianti (all used to be very approachable & these prices look good); 2003 Les Cretes Fumin (Aosta) €19 (a brilliant grape sitting between Nebbiolo and Pinot Noir in profile, and the warmth of 2003 should be ideal for this northerly region); 1999 Isole e Olena Syrah (Tuscany) €45 but a wonderful Syrah - very much Italian in style, also their 2004 Cepparello, a pure Sangiovese of real class for €48; 2007 Hauner Hiera (Sicily) at €17 - a spicy wild wine we love. I'll stop there, at halfway through their list (working back to front). It's a super shop. I'm sure not all will be there, and some others will have replaced them. Don't be afraid to ask for a selection that will drink well & showcase Italy for the price you want to pay.

Regards
Ian

[Krillian]

Hello Ian,

Hard to define my style because I'm a relatively newcomer to wines.

A boy from North Queensland where beer and rum quenched a thirst, and wine was drunk out of a cask....

Enter a move to Adelaide and a love-at-first drink of a bin 389 2004.

Today I try as many local wines as I can (mac vale, barossa etc) and this is why I haven't really ventured outside.... yet.

I do like most reds I try, and enjoy a claire riesling on the whiter side of things.

Thanks for your guidance, I will look for your aforementioned selections!!

I cannot wait!

Cheers

[Ian S]

Hi Krillian
The wines will be different, generally a fair bit more acidity, and something like Chianti is known for a faint bitter twist on the finish (but with good cherry-led fruit). It's a great chance to explore, as you'll get much better value than is possible in Aus.

If you hanker after something bigger, maybe try an Amarone (Primo estate in South Australia do one called Moda, different grape mix, but same technique). I noticed Enoteca Vanni had a 1998 Speri Amarone Monte San'Urbano which I've had myself a few years ago - a good producer. If you see wines from Cantina del Notaio (Basilicata - way down in the south) then they would be worth a go as there is real depth to the fruit as well

For whites, although Tuscany isn't brilliant for whites, there are some good verdicchio di Castelli di Jesi wines for modest money. If you see any Timorasso from up in Piemonte, then grab a glass / bottle of it - a really flexible grape working with quite a few meats as well as food more usual for white wines. Soave from Veneto region very much on the up, Pieropan widely seen and a leader, though if you see Gini, then they are a personal favourite. Otherwise dive into the wonderful whites from Campania (Fino di Avellino, Greco di Tufo, Falanghina etc.). In Cinque Terre, the local stuff is rarely mind blowing, but is good enough and well worth a taste. They do grow the grapes on those precipitous slopes!

Finally a mention for beer. There is a wonderful artisanal beer scene in Italy, sometimes copying european beer styles, but also using Italian creativity to create some really rather unique beers. Perhaps unsurprisingly they are often at best with food, and a really good artisan (bottled) beer can be just as good as wine at the dining table (and despite sometimes quite high prices, generally very good QPR vs. equivalent wines). I did a quick search and found plenty of micro breweries in Tuscany http://www.microbirrifici.org/Toscana_b ... gione.aspx (n.b. produzione sospesa = stopped production). You might also see Baladin beers from Piemonte. They are growing in size, but still very good, and well worth a try.

Regards
Ian

[Krillian]

Hi Ian,

Purchases from Vanni, report to follow when home in a few days!

Cheers

[Ian S]

Nice haul Sam! Una bella selezione di vino

I'll be very interested in what you make of the Monte Bernardi Sa'etta, as this would be under the new ownership after Stak had to sell the winery. A syrah - again of interest. I love the Isole e Olena syrah, though it's ~ €40 a bottle (sadly, good value at that). I can't quite read the vintage on the Cortese Rabaja - 2013? If so, should do well in the cellar (as will the Scarzello, though I'm not sure I've tasted any of their wines, but the name is respected IIRC).

The green label one familiar to me, but might well be unknown to most on the forum, Maccario's Posau vineyard bottling of Rossese di Dolceacqua in Liguria. I took one to an offline over here at the end of last year (a wonderfully eclectic group that meet under the tile of 'Oddities' - the wines that is, the people are just ordinary wine enthusiasts and clearly not odd at all ). That bottle was the 2012 vintage, and I reckoned it was a bit tight and might need more time in the cellar. Even then I suspect it will be a wine that demands food and will be a shock to many Aussie palates. The last one I've heard of but not seen a bottle of before, not really having got into Franciacorta, indeed all I've tasted have been at large walkround tastings.

You have more restraint than me in not digging out some dusty old bottles

All should be safe to let snooze in the cellar for a few years, though if you get the urge to crack one early I'd lean towards the Monte Bernardi (which certainly had good rich fruit under the previous owners) or the Franciacorta.

I hope the holiday is going well, and you're enjoying the wine, food, coffee & ambience.

p.s. if you need bubble wrap for the wines, it's oddly not sold in stationary stores, but instead sold by the 5m roll for little money in simple household good stores selling mops, buckets and the like. Ask for 'Plurabol' (though 'Carta plastica con bollicine' will get the message across as well). Sticky tape is generically referred to by the brand name 'scotch' (oh how they chuckled when I asked what they called it in Italian!).

Regards
Ian

[Ian S]

A quick update from a friend who has returned from Lucca. Enoteca Vanni still going strong, now with tables outside and a sommelier serving aperitivi wines, plus coffees. A nice option for seating a patient (but not that patient!) partner whilst rummaging around in their cellar.

He also advised that the website is not especially accurate, plenty missing, but plenty that has replaced it, so a good rummage is worthwhile unless you have something specific in mind.