è dolce non fare niente (it is sweet to do nothing): It’s My Birthday. Love Chianti. Got Some Vino.

I bought myself an incredible birthday present this year...a private tour through the Chianti countryside, complete with a handsome English-speaking, Italian guide in a Mercedes...life is good. Oh, and Joe got to come too! Francesco picked us up at the hotel, and we headed south out of town. You know those postcards you always see of Tuscany (Toos-cahn-i)? It looks just like that! I saw at least a dozen of villas that would work just fine for me and Joe.

It was a beautiful day...a little cooler than in the city...nice. We drove into the hills and with each turn, the scenery became more stunning. Tall Cyprus trees standing like sentinels, guarding villas and farmhouses and vineyards. There are only two things people in this region do: make wine and olive oil. And enjoy life, I imagine.

We stop at an abbey/church...all stone and tall trees. A couple of cats napping on the driveway and a dog taunting the geese just past the gardens. Ahhhh.

Next stop is the small town of Greve in Chianti. There is a castle in the region, so we go there first. Castles these days are actually comprised of small apartments and homes...like a condo complex, but in an ancient castle.

As we walk along the cobblestone path between numbered doors, we can smell the beginnings of Sunday lunch and hear the sounds of daily life filtering out of the windows above. It’s almost a fairy tale. We make our way down into the town and to the market square (which is actually a triangle – easier to protect than a square). Francesco takes us to the butcher, il macellaio (mah-chell-ah-yo), usually the most powerful and respected man in ancient villages. I thought it was because he had big knives. Turns out it’s because he usually had some schooling, participated in commerce outside the castle or city walls (to trade or bargain for meat), and, yeah, had a big knife. This particular butcher also sold olive oil, wine and other goodies. Of course, Joe and I start shopping...until Francesco tells us that this butcher has a larger shop off the plaza...would we like to go to that one...we can taste some wine, there. Well, duh!!

As we cross the marketplace, we come across a large statue. It’s Verrazano. An explorer from Greve who was the first European to explore the area around New York City and the Hudson River. Perhaps you’ve heard of the Verrazano Bridge? That big one in NYC over New York Bay between Brooklyn and Staten Island? Same guy. Joe paid homage.

The larger butcher shop was apparently the place to be. We tasted. We shopped. We shipped. Francesco got a parking ticket. Bummer.

From Greve we went to a winery. Not to your typical Napa Valley winery, or even the small wineries in Texas...this was a man’s house. Leandro Alessi. Actually, his son runs the business now, but he is still the wine master. He makes several, from a rich and wonderful Chianti Classico, to a Merlot, to a Cab to a couple of whites, a grappa, an aperitif...and yeah, we tasted them all. And of course we bought some. He told us how he got started, that he’s more concerned about his product then worldwide distribution. He told us about some of the awards his wine has won and about a wine critic whose nose and palette are insured for two million dollars who happens to really like Alessi wines. You go, Leandro!

After the tasting and the buying, we walked across the courtyard to his cellar and saw the wines in production. The whole yard was filled with rosemary and lavender (although it had mostly gone to seed). I wonder if I can get a job pasting labels on bottles?

Time for lunch. Francesco got us a table at a wonderful restaurant along the road somewhere. We had a delicious lunch and drank even more, including a local handcrafted beer (you know how we feel about handcrafted beers!!). It was soooo good. Imagine that! (Let me clarify...for all you MADD mothers...Joe and I drank...Francesco sipped...he was driving, after all!)

When lunch was over, we continued through a few small towns, did some walking and more shopping in Radda in Chianti (they always add the in Chianti...like you don’t know where you are). We stopped on the side of the road outside of Radda and Francesco jumped out and brought us a bunch of grapes he picked from a nearby vine. They were small, dark and sweet...just about ready for harvest....delicious!

It was getting close to the end of our day, but we had one more place to go before returning to our hotel. Francesco took us to Piazza di Michelangelo. It’s on the other side of the river, up from the Pitti palace. It’s a little bit up in the hills (a high-end residential area...sort of like Beverly Hills), but overlooks the river, all of Venice and the towns farther up in the hills. It’s where many people turn out every evening to watch the sunset. Outstanding!