The beautiful and elegant Toscana once again turned on its charm for our recent summer tour; perfect summer riding weather and postcard perfect vistas every single day. Yes, it was hot but there was always a swim at the end to entice those final pedal strokes and our riding group were amazing in how they handled it all.
Starting in the green of Chianti, we uncovered countless small hills, rode sections of the L’Eroica and Strade Bianche courses, rolled through beautiful Siena, little medieval hamlets and past stone villas that overlook olive groves and vineyards.
After four immersive days, we transferred via the marvellous landscape of the Crete Senesi, to the world heritage listed Val d’Orcia, and took our time to discover the utterly stupendous landscapes that join Pienza, Montalcino and Montepulciano.
To be able to ride through landscapes where every turn gives you a panorama that is a tightly woven tapestry of history and beauty, is just amazing and something that is unforgettable.
No visit to Chianti is complete without a thorough education of the iconic DOCG Chianti Classico wine and we did this in style at a 900 year old winery, where we sampled wines that have been made in the same way, with only the grapes of each deriving from different hills in the area. It’s incredible how different the wines are and what a great experience it was to learn about each of them.
Every perfect day needs an interesting food experience and in Tuscany in July, this was delivered in spades, with a range of regional specialities, flavours and ways of cooking that saw us enjoy diverse experiences every day.
Hand rolled Pici pasta, Finocchiona salami (salami with fennel) and capocollo on a delicious antipasto plate, a selection of Pecorino cheeses from Pienza, delicious home grown vegetables including amazing tomatoes and eggplant, and a home cooked Tuscan BBQ with Bistecca Fiorentina, were a few of the group favourites.
Our non riding partners enjoyed our very special private tour of Siena, including a visit behind the scenes of the Palio, our traditional cooking class where learning the old school method of hand rolled tagliatelle was on the menu, along with the deliciously fresh Tuscan summer salad of panzanella, and a range of amazing hikes through the picture-perfect countryside were enjoyed under the delightful Tuscan sun.
With every tour, it’s the people that make the experience special, and this was certainly the case on this edition of our Tuscany cycling tour. It was an absolute joy to share everything we know and love about our home region with people who were open to experience and all that it offers.
If you would like to read more details about our Tour of Tuscany click here.
