On our third day in Italy, we woke to blue skies! This day's adventure took us south to the nearby Chianti region. The drive in the countryside was truly lovely and we stopped frequently along the windy roads to enjoy the views. The vineyards were magnificent;the leaves colorful and the vines heavily laden with fruit just weeks away from harvest.
We arrived at our destination; the quaint, little town of Radda. As it is a bit off the beaten track, there were fewer tourists and tourist shops than Siena or Lucca. The black rooster is the symbol of Chianti and roosters were everywhere on everything...
Despite our relatively remote location, we couldn't get away from the reality of the plunging world stock markets...
Who knew if these men were contemplating where to go for lunch or if they, like us, were wondering what was going to happen to their retirement savings...
We found a cute corner cafe, Dante Alighieri, for an alfresco lunch. These diners happily awaited yet another delicious plate of pasta!
After lunch, we set off to visit a nearby winery, Castello d'Albola. This world reknown winery is owned by the Zonin family, who have restored the entire medieval complex beautifully. The oldest buildings on the estate date from the 12th century, when the property was owned by the noble Magnate of Monterinaldi. We had a professional but informal tour of the winery and sampled some delicious wines in the tasting room. Several bottles managed to find their way home with us!
Back at Villa Mezzola we greeted Ted and Edie's son Alex and three of his friends who had come down from Florence for the night. Lisa, Edie and I were the chefs of the evening and after picking up some supplies in town, we prepared a feast for everyone.
We savored the last few hours of the evening before packing our bags for an early departure back to Aix the next day. Arrivedercci!!
More info:
After lunch, we set off to visit a nearby winery, Castello d'Albola. This world reknown winery is owned by the Zonin family, who have restored the entire medieval complex beautifully. The oldest buildings on the estate date from the 12th century, when the property was owned by the noble Magnate of Monterinaldi. We had a professional but informal tour of the winery and sampled some delicious wines in the tasting room. Several bottles managed to find their way home with us!
Back at Villa Mezzola we greeted Ted and Edie's son Alex and three of his friends who had come down from Florence for the night. Lisa, Edie and I were the chefs of the evening and after picking up some supplies in town, we prepared a feast for everyone.
We savored the last few hours of the evening before packing our bags for an early departure back to Aix the next day. Arrivedercci!!
More info:
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