Archive for 'Food and Wine'

Tuscany, with her rolling, picturesque landscapes, excellent food and wine, pretty villages and impressive cities, beautiful coast, stunning buildings, and truly incredible works of art is an inherently romantic destination. It birthed great poets and writers of singular devotion to one beloved such as Petrarch and Dante. It boasts some of the most spectacular sunsets in the world. It is overrun with gorgeous palaces and cathedrals. The pace of life is perfectly suited for focusing entirely on someone special. Really, Tuscany simply is a perfect place to dash to for a little city break for a long weekend or to escape to for an extended getaway with your Valentine.

If you were considering planning a Valentine's getaway in Tuscany together or surprising your love with a
vacation rental in Tuscany this Valentine's Day, you're sure to make incredible memories that will last a lifetime. Here are a list of some of the most romantic things to get up to in this impossibly romantic location....

Bottega Pecchioli is a highly-regarded family-run winery and vineyard in Carmignano, Tuscany, not far from Florence. If you have found a vacation rental in Florence and are thinking about setting aside a day to go wine-tasting and to learn some more about wine and Tuscan culture, then it is an ideal option.

The history of the winery is long and goes back to when the surrounding area of Poggio alla Malva was a small farming village. The first note of the family institution records the Bottega Pecchioli and its “storage area of salt, oil and wine, corn, candles and coal.” In the second half of the 18th century, it became a precursor to what we know a food store to be today and over the years it has been various kinds of business including a tavern, bakery, milk and butter shop, a post office, and wine bar.

Florence is home to some wonderful eateries, a rich dining and culinary tradition, and some of the most unique and interesting businesses that manage to combine worlds such as the likes of the Gucci restaurant. However, if you want to see two worlds that truly seem incompatible and diametrically opposed and boast tasty treats and perfect beverage, then it's hard to imagine anywhere else that somehow works so unexpectedly well as the Libreria Café La Cité. A bookshop and café that becomes a trendy bar and venue by night it offers very different charms and types of appeal, depending on at what time of day you visit! A really cool spot in the city, it is a must for those who like relaxed vibes and unique venues and bars and who have found a vacation rental in Florence.

If you have found a luxury villa in Siena and are looking for somewhere to grab a cup of tea and a cake or, maybe, something a little stronger, then there is definitely one spot that you need to hit up in the city: the Tea Room.

An incredibly popular and cool spot that is favoured by locals in the know, it is located near Piazza del Campo, in a hidden corner of Piazza del Mercato, right in the very beautiful historic centre of the city. Opened in 1985, it is a great social hub that serves up to 100 types of tea, in addition to infusions, hot chocolates, wine, beer, cocktails, cakes, desserts, treats and more.

Montepulciano is one of the most famous wine areas of Tuscany, where some of the most delicious and lauded wines come from. Contucci is the oldest wine producer in Montepulciano and one of the oldest in the world and outdates the second oldest in the region by 900 years.

The Contucci name appears in written records in Montepulciano around 1000AD and they seem to have always been linked to agricultural pursuits. The current property that still serves as their wine cellar to this day is a property that has been in the family since 1646 and was originally built by a Del Monte Cardinal, then owned by the Medici Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinando I, then it became part of the guardhouse of Montepulciano, and finally was adopted as a palace with a wine cellar for the Contucci family.