The Wine Experience
A small DOC. A short story. Wines you have heard of, made by people you have not.
Bolgheri is one of the smallest wine appellations in Italy. You can walk it in an hour. You can see most of the famous estates from a single hilltop.
And yet the wines made here changed Italian wine forever — and a few of the people who carry that story forward have invited us into their cellars, year after year. For five days, we walk those cellars together.
Ornellaia, in motion
A walk through one of Bolgheri’s great estates.
Arnaud filmed our visit to Ornellaia — the cellars, the vineyards, the tasting. Two minutes of what it actually looks like to walk through this estate with us.
How a small village changed Italian wine
It started with one man.
In the 1940s, the Marquis Mario Incisa della Rocchetta planted Cabernet Sauvignon and Cabernet Franc on the slopes of Castiglioncello di Bolgheri. He had grown up admiring French wine. He had noticed that the Etruscan Coast — Mediterranean light, sea breezes, gravelly soil — reminded him of Bordeaux. So he gambled.
For more than twenty years, the wine he made was poured only for him, his family, and his friends. The first commercial vintage of Sassicaia, the 1968, was released in 1971. In 1978, a six-year-old bottle was entered into a blind tasting in London — against thirty-three wines from eleven countries. It stood out. The legend of the Super Tuscans was born in that single afternoon, and the destiny of our small region changed.
Today, Bolgheri is one of the most sought-after wine regions in Italy — Sassicaia, Ornellaia, Masseto. But the appellation is still small. The famous estates are within a few kilometers of each other and of the family wineries. You can taste at a legend in the morning and at a biodynamic pioneer in the afternoon. That intimacy of access is structurally impossible in most wine regions because they are too big.
We have spent twenty years building relationships in this small place. The wineries we take you to are not selected from a brochure. They are chosen because we know the people who make the wine, and because we trust them with you.
The vineyards we walk
Marina is an architect, like me.
She fell in love with a small wooded valley near old mills and built the only certified biodynamic estate in Bolgheri from scratch. She planted her own vineyards. She works with native yeasts and low yields. Her production is small, but her wines have been recognized by international critics — including high marks from James Suckling — for clarity and balance.
She walks us through her vineyards herself. She explains what biodynamic actually means, in her own words, and why she chose the harder path. Then she pours, in her cellar, the wines you will not find easily outside the region.
The second winery is one of the pioneering Bolgheri estates — the choice depends on the season and the group. Sassicaia itself, Tenuta San Guido, is not open to public visits. But you will drink Sassicaia twice during the week. Once at the wine shop in Bolgheri. Once at the elegant restaurant the Tenuta San Guido family owns, where we share the farewell dinner.
The winemakers who come to us
Sometimes the winemaker comes to the kitchen.
Some afternoons, instead of going to the winery, the winemaker comes to us. He arrives at La Casa Toscana while the cooking class is in progress. He brings his bottles. He pours each one alongside the dish I am teaching you to make, and he explains, in his own words, why this glass goes with this dish.
This is the moment that changes how most of our guests think about wine. Not the famous tasting room. Not the flight on the white tablecloth. The kitchen, mid-cook, with a man who made the wine sitting at the table where we are about to eat what we have made together.
Testimonials
Sally & Rowe
Australia
“Treat yourself to a wonderful experience and tour with Chicca her charming Tuscan village, taste delicious pasta, gelato, and many other local specialties. It’s an unforgettable immersion in Tuscan culture, and we felt like locals!”
Jacqueline C
New York, NY
“We loved Castagneto Food tour. We sampled several traditional Tuscan recipes paired with great wines from the area. Lots of food! Our guide was great and told us stories about ancient history and local life as we toured in Castagneto. I learned a lot and had fun!”
Kylee T
Indianapolis, IN
“I would highly recommend Tuscan Wine & Food Tours! We did Bolgheri Food Tour, this village is stunning! We tasted delicious local food and amazing wines. We learn a lot about history, wine culture and traditional recipes from our fun and knowledgeable guide. Don’t miss it!”
The tables that hold it all
By Day 4, you are tasting more than wines.
You are tasting a place. The bottle on the table at the Tenuta San Guido restaurant means something different than it would have meant in a shop in your home country, because by now you have walked the road, met the neighbors, eaten with the people, and understood what this small DOC is and how it became what it is.
You will go home with bottles, if you want them. We can help you choose, and we can help you ship — directly from the estates, or from the wine shop. We do not take any commission on this. We help because we want you to drink the wines on the right night, with the right people, when you are home.
What you actually take home
You taste wine differently now.
After five days, not because you have memorized vintages or tasting notes — you almost certainly have not — but because you have seen wine where it is made, and you have eaten with the people who make it. You know what terroir means in someone’s voice, not just on a back label. You know what biodynamic looks like when it is a daily decision, not a marketing word.
That kind of knowing does not leave.
A few wine questions, briefly
I am not a wine expert. Will I be lost?
You will not. Our winemaker friends explain wine conversationally, not technically. They will pour, they will tell you why this glass works, and they will answer questions at whatever level you are at. Curiosity is the only requirement.
Will I get to visit Sassicaia?
Tenuta San Guido, the estate that makes Sassicaia, is not open to public visits. But you will drink Sassicaia twice during the week — once at the wine shop in Bolgheri, once at the elegant restaurant owned by the Tenuta San Guido family, where we share the farewell dinner.
How many wineries do we visit?
Two formal winery visits during the week — one biodynamic pioneer (often Marina) and one of the historic Bolgheri estates. But wine appears at every meal, paired by the people who made it. And on some afternoons, instead of going to the winery, a winemaker comes to our kitchen and pours alongside the cooking class.
Can I ship wine home?
Yes. We can help you choose, and we can help you ship — directly from the estates or from the wine shop in Bolgheri. We do not take any commission on this. We help because we want you to drink the wines on the right night, with the right people, when you are home.
Have other questions? See the full FAQ — or write to me directly. The real conversation is the call.
A presto, Chicca
