Veni, Vidi, Vino – Touring a Tuscan Vineyard 🍷

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Hooray! My favorite Frenchman has arrived at the villa to enjoy the Tuscan area with me, and now I HAVE WHEELS and can travel into the countryside, which has not been as accessible to me as the cities I have visited via train and bus.

I’ve been anxious to get into the iconic landscape dotted with cypress trees and olive groves that is just beyond my reach, but without a car (or scooter) it hasn’t been an option for me.  With Piu here on his motorcycle, we can head to the hills and explore.

Piu rode his Royal Enfield motorcycle from his home in the Dordogne Valley to the villa – over 650 miles – to spend my last two weeks with me at Villa di Corliano.  He was hoping to have an opportunity to paraglide in Italy as well, since there was a takeoff about 1/2 mile from the villa (Serendipitous, no??) Because my “caretaker” apartment is so tiny, we needed to rent a larger place from Agostino, the count, and he gave us a killer price for the Cosimo apartment just downstairs from my Cinderella suite which offered a full kitchen, spacious dining room complete with a china cabinet full of fancy crystal and antique tea sets and dinnerware, and a large bedroom with huge windows whose shutters opened to the gardens in back.

I had created a list (haha, of course!) of things to do and places to go once he arrived, and one of the first things we did was visit a vineyard in the hills just outside of Lucca.

Immediately upon arrival, I fell in love with the place.  Perched up in the hills of Tuscany, high above Lucca in a quiet, green and verdant area, we parked the motorcycle and asked for a tour and tastings (of course!).

The winery, built partly underground into the hills, dates back to the start of the 16^th century, and has produced wine every year for nearly 500 years. It was a beautiful estate – flowers of all kinds and colors burst from barrels and spilled profusely from pots and planters. In the fields before us, three thousand olive trees, mostly of the Frantoio variety, stood at attention in neat tidy rows, with silvery green leaves hiding an abundance of flavorful olives used to make award-winning olive oil.

In the fields adjoining the olives, 35 acres of grapevines curled, clutched and wound their way around the stakes and fencing placed to hold the vines heavy with fruit. Mostly San Giovese and Trebbiano grapes are used, producing incredibly delicious wines – as we were soon to find out.

Our tour began with the olive production, and we were walked through the spotlessly clean area where the olives were sorted, pressed and the oil decanted.  A shot glass of olive oil was offered to each of us – you would think it strange to “drink” olive oil, but this was a smooth, spicy oil bursting with freshness and light.  Yes, we bought a bottle.  And we enjoyed the heck out if for the next few weeks, drizzled over fresh tomatoes, cucumbers, avocados and peppers.

Next, we learned about the vines, the grapes and the harvest.  We went down steps into cool, dark back room to see the massive oak barrels used to age the red wines for 12 to 24 months, and the small French oak barrels for the white wines.

Once the tour was complete, the best part began – the tastings!  Four different wines were offered, and the glasses were quite full – not just a tiny “taste” here at Colleverde, but almost a proper glass full.  From a light and fruity white (“a great breakfast wine”) to a robust ruby red, we swirled, sniffed, sampled and sighed.  Our final taste was so divine, so rich, so smooth that we bought a bottle to take back with us – if you’re interested, it was Colleverde Nero Della Spinosa, a rich and velvety syrah with pepper, spice and leather tones.

A perfectly wonderful day – one of my favorite days in Tuscany! I’d highly recommend a visit next time you’re in the neighborhood! www.colleverdevineyards.com or if you can find this wine where you live, treat yourself and enjoy a sip from Lucca’s hills  – it’s a glass of warm Tuscan sunshine.

“Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing.” 
― Ernest Hemingway