Wine Tasting at Antinori nel Chianti Classico
Singing Wine Tasting in the Rain!
If you plan to visit Tuscany, a tour at the renowned Marchesi Antinori nel Chianti Classico winery is a must. We had a driver for the day, who navigated us to the winery, then dropped us off in Siena for the night. It was raining that day, but the grounds were stunning rain or shine!
The winery has a grand entrance, and the architecture and vineyards are a work of art. The tour starts with a video, which gives a background on the Antinori family, and their winemaking process. Alessia, Albiera, and Allegra Antinori are the first women to lead the brand after 25 generations (!!!!!) of operations dating back to the late 1300s. It is not often you are truly inspired by a tour video, but these are amazing women with incredible stories to read about.
The tour was very thorough, and the very first walk through was breathtaking. There are rows of barrels and glass tasting rooms elevated above.
The winery is enormous, and there were several rooms of stainless steel tanks and oak barrels. They also had some olive oil barrels on display, some dating back to the 1800s.
We also got to see the behind the scenes machinery of pressing the grapes.
The lush, green vineyards were absolutely beautiful spanning for miles against the Tuscan hillside.
We had a tasting of three wines after the tour, which was located inside the gorgeous wine shop. There is such a wide selection and fun displays, you will definitely want to bring (or ship) some home with you.
You may taste additional wines of your choice at an extra cost located at a separate tasting station inside the shop.
I would call it a very successful trip!
As for buying Antinori wines, you really can’t go wrong. I highly recommend Villa Antinori Toscana for casual weekly drinking, and Tignanello as a nicer bottle. I also enjoy their Il Bruciato Bolgheri wine. If you live near an Eataly, you can also purchase Antinori in-store, or order from BevMo! or Total Wine. Cheers!
