WINE EXPERIENCE

guida: annette e michele

At that time the heralds traveled on horseback. We instead jump on the saddle of our E-MTBs. Our 2-day trip starts from Ponte Vecchio in Florence and takes us to the heart of Siena - through the rolling hills of Chianti, away from traffic, on white roads, amidst vineyards and forests of oak trees. We will be enchanted by the charm of the historic villages and castles that the Florentines built since 1100 as bulwarks against Siena, such as Volpaia, Brolio, Fonterutoli. We will delight in picnics under the pine trees, visit the Chianti Classico wineries and indulge in the landscapes and skies. Perhaps you have never traveled through history in such an exciting way!

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Between Florence and Siena today there is the “Raccordo Autostradale”. One hour by car. But we will retrace history through the old mule tracks, a more authentic and exciting way to travel between these two cities of history and art through Chianti, a hilly landscape that for many centuries separated the two cities rather than connecting them. Florence and Siena were perhaps the greatest contenders in all of Europe between 1200 and 1600: on one hand a Guelph Florence loyal to the Pope, open to the world, with its wealthy merchant families and magnificent Renaissance art. On the other a conservative, gothic and medieval world, Ghibellines loyal to the emperor but also with the oldest bank in the world behind it. In the middle was - and still is - Chianti. A hilly and wooded border territory. Here, many patrician Florentine families built fortified estates to secure the land from Siena. And since they were already there, they cultivated olives and vines, laying the foundations for one of the most famous red wines in the world today, Chianti Classico. Chianti as we see it today is the result of the ancient conflict between Florence and Siena.

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