Wine Tourism in Tuscany

Tuscany is among the Italian regions where the link between wine and territory is oldest and best documented. Viticulture dates back to the Etruscans, who made wine a sign of prestige and conviviality, and in 1716 an edict issued by Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici delimited the areas of prized production – Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Valdarno di Sopra – anticipating the principle of designations of origin. Today the region counts 11 DOCG, 41 DOC and 6 IGT wines, a heritage that reflects the variety of its landscapes: the inland hills, the coast, the islands and the mountain areas. Wine is part of the region's history well before being a tourist resource, and visiting the places of production makes it possible to read its origins, its transformations and its ties with the landscape. 

This diversity translates into a tourist offer organised around itineraries. In the Chianti Classico area, the Chiantigiana road (SR222) links Florence to Siena through rural parish churches, castles and villages such as Greve, Panzano and Castellina, with wines in the Annata, Riserva and Gran Selezione categories. Between Siena and Montalcino, the Via Cassia crosses the clay hills of the Val d'Orcia, with villages such as San Quirico d'Orcia and sites such as the abbey of Sant'Antimo, and reaches the lands of Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano and the Orcia DOC. In San Gimignano, where fourteen towers rise above a hill covered in vine rows, Vernaccia is produced, a white wine already known and widespread in the Middle Ages. On the Etruscan Coast, at Bolgheri, the Super Tuscans and Bolgheri DOC wines are made, while the Maremma, among villages such as Sovana, Sorano and Pitigliano, offers Morellino di Scansano, Bianco di Pitigliano, Montecucco from the slopes of Monte Amiata, and the Vermentino wines of the coast. On Elba, where Napoleon signed the Emperor's Privilege protecting the local wines, Aleatico, Ansonica and Vermentino are grown. The picture is completed by the high-altitude wines: the reds of Monte Amiata, the Pinot Noir of the Mugello, the Sangiovese and Merlot of the Casentino, the biodynamic productions of the Lucchesia and the Colli di Luni DOC in the Lunigiana.

The wine heritage is matched by an architectural and cultural one. Toscana Wine Architecture brings together "signature" wineries and is the first initiative in Italy to link wine, design and territory; it is promoted by the Tuscany Region with the Federation of the Wine, Oil and Flavour Routes of Tuscany, Vetrina Toscana and Fondazione Sistema Toscana. Wineries and their architecture also host collections and works by artists such as Pistoletto, Kapoor and Bourgeois; a love of art and respect for the environment unite historic estates and recently founded wineries.

Hospitality is organised as a network. The Federation of the Routes, established in 2001 as the first national network dedicated to wine tourism, brings together fifteen Routes, including the Vino Nobile di Montepulciano Wine Route, the Carmignano Wines Route and the Orcia Wine Route, which connect wineries, oil mills, taverns, farms and traditional crafts and offer tastings, cellar visits, lunches at farm stays and meetings with producers. Vetrina Toscana, the Region's project for food and wine tourism, counts over two thousand member businesses and promotes, throughout the year, more than 350 events across the territory, including in lesser-known places. Wine thus becomes a key to understanding the landscape, the history and the communities, within a model of tourism attentive to seasonality and to the protection of the environment.

1. Historical itinerary
   In 1716, an edict issued by Grand Duke Cosimo III de' Medici delimited the areas of Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Valdarno di Sopra, among the first quality wine-producing zones ever to be defined. Experience: a route through the four zones, with visits to the places of production and tastings of the denominations.
2. Historic cellar
   Estates and castles house cellars where wine has been made for generations. Experience: a visit with the owning family among the barrels and ageing rooms, with a tasting of selected vintages.
3. Design cellars in harmony with nature
   Contemporary architecture enters into dialogue with the landscape, as in the wineries of the Toscana Wine Architecture network. Experience: a visit to a cellar set into the hills, with a museum-style tour, an underground barrel room and a tasting of the signature wines.
4. Wine and sea
   From the coast to the islands, the proximity of the sea shapes both landscapes and wines. Experience: from Bolgheri to Elba, visits to wineries among terraces and sea-view hills, with a tasting at sunset.
5. Wine and sport
   Trekking, horseback riding and golf offer a different pace at which to experience vineyards and landscapes. Experience: a trek or a horseback ride among the vines, or a day of golf, followed by a cellar visit and a tasting with the producer.
   

1. The Etruscans were the first to introduce the art of winemaking to our land. 
2. Dante mentions Vernaccia in Canto XXIV of Purgatorio, in the passage on the punishments inflicted on the gluttons in their terrace. 
3. The wine edict of Cosimo de' Medici is the famous proclamation issued on 24 September 1716 by Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (known as the Bando Sopra la Dichiarazione dé Confini delle quattro Regioni Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano, e Val d'Arno di Sopra, "Edict on the Declaration of the Boundaries of the Four Regions of Chianti, Pomino, Carmignano and Val d'Arno di Sopra"), regarded as the first DOCG ante litteram in history.

Red grape varieties

·Sangiovese: the dominant variety in every appellation wine. Also known as Sangiovese Grosso (Brunello di Montalcino) and Prugnolo Gentile (Montepulciano)
·Canaiolo Nero
·Ciliegiolo
·Colorino

·Aleatico

·Vermentino Nero

·International varieties: Cabernet Sauvignon, Cabernet Franc, Merlot, Syrah, Pinot Noir.

White grape varieties

·Trebbiano Toscano

·Malvasia Bianca Lunga

·Vernaccia di San Gimignano

·Vermentino (Bianco)

·Ansonica

·Canaiolo Bianco

·Biancone

·Grechetto

·Verdello

·International varieties: Chardonnay, Sauvignon Blanc, Sémillon, Pinot Blanc, Pinot Grigio, Riesling.

Anteprime di Toscana Week 2027

Dates: mid-February 2027

Location: multi-venue event (Florence, Montepulciano, San Gimignano).

BuyWine Toscana 2027

Dates: 10-11 March 2027

Location: Stazione Leopolda, Florence

Widespread events of Movimento Turismo del Vino Toscana

Movimento Turismo del Vino Toscana (MTV) coordinates the best-known wine tourism events for those who wish to experience wine directly in the cellar:

Cantine Aperte 2027: the reference event for wine tourism in Italy, held as tradition has it on the last weekend of May. Around 100 wineries in all Tuscan provinces open their doors for guided visits to the winemaking areas, special tastings, picnics in the vineyards and concerts.

Calici di Stelle (July-August): evening tastings in wineries and in the squares of Tuscan villages, under the starry sky of San Lorenzo.

Strafesta Toscana

From June to September, organised by the Federazione delle Strade del Vino, it brings together the wine tourism events held across the region.

• Strade Vino di Toscana
• Vetrina Toscana