The Lambregts family adventures: Tuscany

After talking about it for years the decision was finally made to drive to Tuscany, for the yearly trip of Piet’s wine and dine society ‘Het Derde Glas’. Picking a date with six busy people is always a challenge, and this time only four of them could make it. With some careful planning, to keep the logistics manageable, Piet drove a 9-seater bus out of The Hague, on an early Sunday morning in April. In Utrecht he picked up Frits and Sybren, and they drove through Germany and Switzerland to Como, in northern Italy, through heavy rain, and the occasional snow storm. The next day more bad weather, and the Milan Monday morning rush hour, was waiting for them, and early afternoon they arrived in Empoli, to pick up Paul who just wrapped up a week of hiking in Tuscany.

The first official wine stop was at Tenuta Moriniello, where unimpressive Chianto was tasted. The most interesting was the fact that this estate was given to a young brother and sister pair by their father. Close by, just outside the tourist town of Volterra, was the next visit at Podere Marcampo, where the enthusiastic owner talked at length about terroir, whilst standing in the vineyard. The tasting was somewhat overshadowed by a loud group of American women, who were apparently streaming their experience live back across the ocean. Followed by another moderate purchase we set off for a long drive to Montalcino, a beautiful hill town in southern Tuscany, to an agriturismo that would be our base for the next days. The day was wrapped up with an excellent dinner at Boccon Divino, whilst it was pouring down outside.

Tuesday was planned as Chianto Classico day, the core wine making region in Tuscany, between Siena and Florence. The day started at Fattoria Carpineta Fontalpino, just east of Siena, in a nice tasting room. Our host explained the ongoing marketing efforts to further split the Chianto Classico in smaller appellations, to make it appear more like Burgundy. The conclusion was that the jury is still out! The next stop was in the small village of Lamole, at I Fabbri. To get there required a significant stretch on steep, unpaved roads, the famous Strade Bianchi, a major effort for the bus. We were received by the owner Susanna, who again passionately talked about her wines, and the effects of climate change (whilst a hail shower passed outside). A classic Italian lunch was enjoyed in another nice Chianti village, Panzano, followed by a stop at Tenuta di Carleone, in Radda in Chianti. Not unusual during the trip they had forgotten about the appointment, and quickly dragged an English-speaking hostess from her office. The main advantage was an efficient tasting, trying to fit us in their busy schedules. Just across the road we ended up at Val delle Corti 30 minutes early, and everything was closed. After calling the owner he promised us that he would wake up his wife from her siesta to host us. He also mentioned that a rain coat was left at Fabbri by one of us. Sybren got on the case and agreed a drop off point with Susanna, after finishing at Corti. There were two English tourists that joined the tasting, hosted by the German lady of the house, who spoke again perfect English, like at almost all wineries during the trip. Main topic, like often, is the all singing and dancing wine app, an advanced Excel spreadsheet to record our purchases. There is always a worry that this used to score the wines… After picking up the coat nearby it was a long drive back, and it was decided to have a simple meal in Montalcino, to compensate for lunch. This ended up being a very disappointing pizza, in a place crowded with locals, and an out-of-place, excellent wine list.

On Wednesday the plan was to visit four different wine regions, starting in Montecucco, at Basile. This was at the end of a steep, narrow gravel road, another challenge for the bus. Here we received a second breakfast during the tasting in the barrel cellar. This was an appetizer for the next visit at Tenuta di Sesta, in the famous Brunello di Montalcino region. They make beautiful, tasteful and expensive wines, and this was one of the highlights of the trip. What followed was a long drive west towards the coast to Fattoria le Pupille in the appellation of Morellino di Scansano. Here we had a dedicated hostess, and a full wine experience, with an excellent lunch of local cheese and sausage, whilst tasting and talking. She warned us to call the next winery as we were already late. Whist driving further west that call was made to Petra, near Grosseto, who told us that they couldn’t shift the time by 30 min, so we had to turn around, saving at least an hour of driving. On the way back to Montalcino a quick stop was made at the shop of Col d’Orcia for some more Brunello, followed by a scenic Strade Bianchi route back to the agriturismo. We had the first hour of free time (yes, it is hard work these trips!) and walked to the town for a nice meal at Re di Macchia.

On Thursday it was time to pack, and for another day of driving. First east to the tourist town of Montepulciano, to taste another well-known Tuscan wine: Nobile de Montepulciano. Arriving at Le Berne it was very quiet, despite the owner asking us beforehand to be on time, as it was a national holiday in Italy. We found some elderly people, and with hands and feet, and a few words of Italian they understood our purpose. The daughter of the house was woken up, and she hosted a lively tasting, before her own breakfast. A few minutes down the road at Podere Boscarelli everything was organized much more professionally. We left with a good selection for re-tasting at a later date. A long drive followed, towards the Bolgheri appellation, close the coast near Pisa. An appointment for a tasting and lunch was booked and paid through the very slick website of Mulini di Segalari. We were surprised when the navigation guided us down a narrow dirt track, through a stream, to an overgrown open area with a simple wooden sign stating ‘parking’. Then an old, grey lady appeared and it really looked we were at the wrong place. Things changed quickly, as she spoke excellent English, and invited us in. She, and her family, maintained a biodynamic vineyard, integrated with nature as much as possible. They were clearly highly educated, and for example, used drones and digital mapping to determine ideal harvest times. The quality of the wines, cheese, sausage and olive oil was excellent, and we spend an entertaining two hours with her. Back on the main road a quick stop was made at Dario di Vaira for our last taste of Tuscan wine. The evening was spent in Lucca, walking around town, and another nice dinner in All ‘Olivo.

The next morning the long road back started, first to Chiasso in Switzerland, to pick up some wine Paul had lying there in a warehouse, and then via Luzern to Germany, to the village of Neuershausen, on the edge of the small Kaiserstuhl wine region. We had a very German (and good) dinner, with French wine. In the morning we re-packed the wine, so it could be easily distributed back home, and then drove through the Kaiserstuhl hills to Peter Wagner, for the final visit of the trip. He presented a variety of white and red, and we realised that we had tasted twelve different wines before it was even 10:30……spitting out is the name of the game! We ended up near Utrecht by the end of the afternoon, and the middle of Koningsdag, so we had to drop off the wine at Paul, using his car as temporary storage. Piet drive back with his loot to The Hague. Everybody was tired after a long trip, with many hours of driving, but the re-tasting in the following weeks has proven it was all worth it!