The Chianti Valley
The famous Chianti district in Tuscany stretches from Florence to Siena and is located west of the Valdelsa and east of the Chianti mountains.
Many have brutally claimed the territory as their own and the area has always been considered the ‘heart of Tuscany’.
The Etruscans called this territory 'Clante' after the river and the landscapes have communicated Italy around the world.
Vineyards, chestnuts, oak forests medieval towns, castles, farmhouses and those classic cypress trees say it all.
As for the wine the first association of Chianti wine producers was established in Radda in Chianti in 1924.
For anyone coming from Florence the natural gateway to the zone is Impruneta.
Get there for the annual grape festival on the last Sunday of September and the Festival of San Luca in October.
The old medieval town of Greve in Chianti also hosts its wine festival in September, the most important of all in Chianti.
The city is in fact dominated by the castle of Montefioralle, an ancient fortified town with a magnificent panoramic view of the valley.
Not far away is Volpaia, yet another picturesque medieval town with a castle, but the name is today famous on millions of bottles of wine.
Towards the Chianti mountain pass in the direction of Siena is Gaiole, one of the most famous landscapes in Italy. You know the one.
Carrying on past San Leonino and Fonterutoli, Siena eventually comes into view.
And then there is the modern industrial base of the valley around Poggibonsi in the Upper Val d’Elsa.
Here much of the zone's furniture, pots and glass are made. Do visit the stunning and much overlooked walled town of Colle Val d'Elsa. |
