So Much to Learn, Experience, Taste...

If you decide to rent a car to visit nearby hill towns or wineries, we’ll point you in the right direction. You’ll soon learn your way around. There is art, history, food and wine everywhere. The people are open and friendly. Castellina in Chianti has museums, shops and markets. Nearby Radda in Chianti is the medieval seat of the Chianti League. Learn the story behind the black rooster, the symbol of the Chianti Classico consortium. Visit the Chianti Classico wineries, taste and learn the wines, the science and the history.

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From hand-painted pottery to hand-spun cashmere scarves, our local friends and artisans welcome you to their studios to visit and shop.

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Our bicycle-friendly town is the home of L'Eroica, a unique biking event featuring vintage (1980's and earlier) gear and clothing. You might spend your days riding on the area's "white roads" through vineyards and olive groves.

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Bring a picnic lunch along on a hike the hills around our house to a lake. Or if you prefer, trek part of  the famous Via Francigena pilgrim road that once led from Canterbury to Rome. 

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Be a shepherd for a day and get to know the Cashmere goats up close and personal. Gain appreciation for why this cashmere is so special.

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Tour castles and abbeys. You can experience monks singing Gregorian chants, filling every corner of the chapel commissioned by Charlemagne and said to have been erected overnight by fairies.

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Visit Siena, a medieval city-state, rival of Florence. Here is a rich and proud history with unique Medieval traditions like The Palio, a bareback horserace run by the 17 "contrade" of the city. The Duomo with its striped facade was designed to be the largest cathedral in the world until that pesky Black Death created a change of plans. The inside is a marvel, with works by Michelangelo, Donatello, Pisano and don’t forget to look down. The floor is a masterpiece of mosaic.  The famous sloped Campo is anchored by the Palazzo Pubblico with its tower and famous 14th century allegorical frescoes depicting good and bad government.

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While you'll enjoy daily meals of the typical and traditional local cuisine, you might want to discover a typical dish or see how our cooking measures up by having lunch or dinner at an osteria in the village or a neighboring town.

Why Castles and Kitchens
LIVE - IN ... Vacation is Different

Standard tours abroad transport you from place to place for sightseeing, giving you a snapshot of a country or countries. You spend a day or less in particular cities. You see a lot, but from a distance.

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We’re different. We're about really experiencing a place.

Our focus is on introducing you to the people, having authentic  and extended interactions. Get into rhythm of life, food, history and culture of a small area. 

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•We host 8 guests each week.

•Unpack, relax, make yourself at home. Help yourself to food, wine, figs and walnut on the trees, relax by the pool, take a walk, bike, or take a drive around the hills.

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•You'll make friends with locals whether or not you know the language. But we'll teach you some courtesies anyway so you can make the good impression!

•You come to know your way around town and the surrounding area so you can go explore and discover on your own.

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•What are those trees, those birds?  What’s that growing in the field? What's on the supermarket shelves and how do you navigate the produce section?

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•Observe and participate in normal daily life in a small town in rural Tuscany.

These details make the difference between a tour and

an authentic experience.

Ever after, a road on a map will evoke a picture in your mind of fields, woods, bridges, villages and people you've met.

Our week in Chianti is dedicated to getting to know this unique area and its people.  What better window into a culture than its kitchen table? Tuscan cuisine is as honest and down to earth as its people. Roasted and grilled meats, fresh vegetables, soups, and pasta are elevated by the sublime addition of the local olive oil.   Francesca has been cooking this food since she was a kid and still enjoys learning the favorite hyper-local adaptations of local cooks and she especially loves being able to use the local varieties of vegetables, grains and meats. Every day you are invited to join her in one of our large country kitchens as we prepare the to spend the evening at the table just like our neighbors are doing!

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We’ll be making the famous pastries and crostate for breakfasts. Our daily handmade pasta will be dressed with a variety of authentic local flavors, such as wild boar ragu, porcini mushrooms and walnuts from our own tree, cherry tomatoes and garlic and more. Our  butcher, Luciano, raises the esteemed Cinta Senese pigs, whose meat will grace our table grilled, roasted and in most remarkably flavored and textured sausages and salamis, which we serve with figs from our tree. Taste the flavor of  truly free range poultry and beef. On Thursdays, our friends Jacopo and Cristina set up their fresh fish market at the edge of the village. Wednesdays and Saturdays the vegetable market offers an opportunity for culinary adventures.

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Come with us to the local grocery store and area markets, and enjoy learning to shop differently. We’ll discover new vegetables and fruits and we’ll bring them home and play with them. You can choose the cheeses, salami and meats. In a week’s time, you will have learned shopping and cooking techniques and recipes that will save you time and work in the kitchen even as you lay out truly outstanding meals. We will help you understand the wines and how they enhance food. We’ll be presenting Chianti Classico, Toscana,  Riserva, and Gran Selezione, the great wines of Chianti, daily at the house and will help you appreciate their unique personalities.

•We suggest you fly into Florence’s Peretola  aka Amerigo Vespucci Airport .

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• If you wish to explore the area freely and on your own for the week, a car rental is best. We can help with that if you like. Most cars are manual transmission, but automatics may be had. Most of the route from Florence to our place is highway driving. The roads for last several miles to our place are winding country roads. The drive is about an hour and ten minutes. A kilometer is .6 mile.

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• If you prefer not to drive, we can assist you in arranging transportation to and from the airport.

Private Car Service can be arranged.

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Take the train from Santa Maria Novella Station in Florence to Montevarchi-Terranuova Station and we will pick you up.

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We include three activities during your week ---

 • Introduction to Chianti, Etruscan tombs and lunch with author Dario Castagno

  • Vineyard, Winery and Castle Tour   

    • Off site Cooking Class, like PIZZA making with our friends Ciro & Cira! 

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The rest of the time is yours for the sweet Far' niente "do nothing" by the pool....

    walk, bike or drive to explore on your own....

       cook, shop, taste wine or choose an adventure with Dean or Francesca....