Mapping MONTALCINO

Siena's tour guide association heads for once out of town to propose a visit to Montalcino's lesser known sights. The guided walk will take you via some of the wine town's churches to Montalcino's medieval hospital. Inside the hospital the Scrittoio  or Studiolo (little office) has been frescoed by San Gimignano born painter Vincenzo Tamagni. San Francesco church and hospital (on the left) seen from Montalcino's town center Tamagni (1492 - 1530) was a pupil of Renaissance painter Sodoma, with whom he worked on the frescoes in the cloister of the Monte Oliveto Maggiore abbey near Buonconvento. Apart of his works in various Tuscan towns, Tamagni later collaborated with Raphael in Rome on the famous Logge at the Vatican.   GUIDED VISIT TO MONTALCINO: SUNDAY 29th of DECEMBER, 2013 Meeting point in front of the fortress at 3 pm. Cost of the guided tour is 6 € per person. The visit is in Italian, but it's well worth walking along for English speakers as th...

I'm always impressed when somebody knows a lot of flower names. I know about three of them (tulips, roses, and there was one more...). But the thing that I really envy is people who don't just recognize a particular plant, but also know whether it's edible, poisonous or something in between.  The Tuscan villages are full of such geniuses, who - in the form of old ladies -  spend spring mornings trotting along the road side to pick bunches of herbs and salad greens that look like common grass to me. It's a science really, and I'm relieved to see that efforts are made to passing the knowledge on to the next generation.  In March and April hands-on foraging lessons take place around Monticchiello in the heart of the Val d'Orcia . The beautiful village is best known for its teatro popolare (the fun theater performances of the locals) and for its vicinity to Pienza, the ideal Renaissance city of pope Pius II .  From wild fennel to mint: recognizing is ...

Looking for a guide to take you to Montalcino's wineries? Planning to taste your way through wine cellars stocked with Brunello?  The Brunello wine maker consortium had exactly you in mind when projecting their app to Montalcino's 250 vineyards. No need to book a guided tour and cram into a bus. Just download the app on to your iPhone and start cruising independently. Or better even, download the app whilst still at home and start training. Winery visits in Montalcino are nothing for the fainthearted (unless you insist on spitting the stuff - but then why would you?).  Roads less traveled : On the way to the Argiano winery  near Tavernelle, Montalcino The iPhone app is available in English and Italian. A version for android phones is in planning. Doing Samsung myself, I haven't been able to try the app yet, but will report about it, once it's available to unfashionable smartphone users like me too.  iBrunello - your virtual guide to the vineyards of...

Who doesn't love San Quirico? The beautiful town is part of Val d'Orcia , the UNESCO world heritage valley which further includes the towns of Montalcino, Pienza, Radicofani and Castiglione d'Orica (and the respective villages that belong to their municipalities). Even though San Quirico d'Orcia is located centrally between Montalcino and Pienza, many a tourist doesn't have time for a stopover. A shame! The town may be less famous, but it's just as attractive as its two haughtier neighbors. Most of all, it has a great infrastructure (hotels, restaurants) and great sights worth seeing with fewer tourists blocking the view. Welcome to San Quirico d'Orcia  WHEN TO VISIT  Any season is fine as unlike its neighbors San Quirico d'Orcia never feels too crowded. Lovers of medieval style festivals should visit in June, when San Quirico is busy celebrating famous crusader and Holy Roman emperor Frederick Barbarossa (1122 - 1190). Or rather his long ...

Planning to spend a few days in Montalcino? Read wedding planner and tour guide Serena's account of her holiday in Brunello town this summer.  You never learn enough of Tuscany and whenever you have the chance to tour an area, you go back home with the feeling that yet something is missing and you need to go back to see more… This sensation was even stronger when visiting Montalcino and Val D’Orcia this summer with my family. View from Montalcino over the hills of the Crete Senesi and Val d'Orcia