Tuscany Wine tour from Livorno

Has anyone done a wine tasting tour in Tuscany from the port of Livorno? We are in port from 7:00 am to 7:00 pm.

I would be interested in any recommendations.

Rome in Limo. A wonderful company, recommended here almost daily...

Rome in Limo. A wonderful company, recommended here almost daily...

Thank you. I have used them several times and they are fantastic. I was just thinking about trying to use a company whose specialty was wine tours, but they would be a good fallback.

Thank you. I have used them several times and they are fantastic. I was just thinking about trying to use a company whose specialty was wine tours, but they would be a good fallback.

They did fine on our tour.

They did fine on our tour.

Do you remember what you specifically did? I think I will need to somewhat customize the day, as they don't have a wine tour mapped out. I think I'd also like to visit San Gimignano. I appreciate your help.

Definitely customize your tour.

We went to Siena, and did a great Chianti tasting, with food pairings, and tour, of a small family winery. Plus some Florence touring.

Check out Tuscany Taste Tour. Maurizio is a friend and we have used him 3 years in a row. We have his company for our Nov. cruise as well. We even use him for Rome to Port transport. Check their website. His stops are top notch. One winery we stopped was free pouring Super Tuscans at their homemade sit-down lunch. Happy sailing.

We did Papillion tour that included Pisa then Florence then a really nice tour and wine tasting , really perfect day

Guido Bandinelli is a certified sommelier and licensed tour guide. His English is excellent and, unlike the Rome in Limo drivers, he can accompany you into the wineries and tasting rooms.

http://www.guidos-tours.com/cruises.html

We went to Tenuta Torciano. We had lunch and tasting. The food and wine were amazing. Our guide told us we would not need a second winery that day and he was correct - the wine flowed. It is in the hills of San Gimignano so then you could visit the town which is also a great place. We went on an excursion from our hotel but it is a pretty big place and I am sure tour guides in the area go to it.

Yes last summer I got a group of 8 together and we used italytoursharing.com We covered the Tuscany country side with lunch at a farm house and tour of a family winery. It was awesome. We also stopped in Florence and Pisa briefly but mostly focused on the winery and countryside.

We went to Tenuta Torciano. We had lunch and tasting. The food and wine were amazing. Our guide told us we would not need a second winery that day and he was correct - the wine flowed. It is in the hills of San Gimignano so then you could visit the town which is also a great place. We went on an excursion from our hotel but it is a pretty big place and I am sure tour guides in the area go to it.

Torciano was probably the best winery we had visited in the 3 years we have been going to Tuscany. Owner's daughter is a hoot.

http://www.decanter.com/wine-travel/italy/top-10-tuscan-wineries-to-visit-13770/2/

Having an interest in wines and tours I have discovered that a lot of tours take you to wineries that focuses more on the tour than the wine. This was really evident from my Napa visit. I want to tour wineries that make great wine not wineries that gives good tours.

You must know that the tour companies get perks from wineries on their tours. It's no different than a recommended shopping stop on a guided tour.

I suggest that you customize your tour with the towns that you want to visit first and then add as many wineries that you want to visit along that route. Google maps is great for this and it will estimate the travel times as well.

I did that last fall when I was in northern Italy visiting Venice, Verona and the Valpolicella wine region.

We went to Tenuta Torciano. We had lunch and tasting. The food and wine were amazing. Our guide told us we would not need a second winery that day and he was correct - the wine flowed. It is in the hills of San Gimignano so then you could visit the town which is also a great place. We went on an excursion from our hotel but it is a pretty big place and I am sure tour guides in the area go to it.

Did you eat in the vineyard?

Did you eat in the vineyard?

They have a lovely dining area inside the winery. Not to be missed. Nona does the lunch from local ingredients.

They have a lovely dining area inside the winery. Not to be missed. Nona does the lunch from local ingredients.

I looked at that option and it looks great. I was just wondering if anyone had eaten out in the vineyard. It is a bit more expensive and I wondered if it was worth it.

I looked at that option and it looks great. I was just wondering if anyone had eaten out in the vineyard. It is a bit more expensive and I wondered if it was worth it.

You do get to walk around a bit. The dining area is perfectly fine. Outside is a gamble especially if it might rain. IMHO I wouldn't pay extra. Use the money to buy some of their wines. AWESOME>

I have checked out the winery listed above in Post #10 and it looks wonderful. I wrote to Papillon tours to see if they would be able to do that specific winery in their Florence/San Gimignano tour. Waiting to hear back. Originally they suggested "i Balzini" winery. anyone know of it?

Also when reviewing the website for Tuscany Tours they do not indicate that they pick up at the ship,in Livorno, they appear to be based out of Florence.

Did you eat in the vineyard?

No we did not eat in the vineyard. We ate in one of the wine cellars. Just our group of 6 was there and it was great. There were a lot of different groups upstairs eating so check into different options. Having the wine cellar to ourselves really added to a great experience.

Guido Bandinelli is a certified sommelier and licensed tour guide. His English is excellent and, unlike the Rome in Limo drivers, he can accompany you into the wineries and tasting rooms.

 

http://www.guidos-tours.com/cruises.html

I also used Guido, he gave us one of the best tours i have done. He took us to San Gimignano to wander around for a while, drove us to the winery where we learned about the grapes/wine and had a wonderful lunch. We then drove back via Pisa - as I had booked a visit up the tower. All so professional.

No we did not eat in the vineyard. We ate in one of the wine cellars. Just our group of 6 was there and it was great. There were a lot of different groups upstairs eating so check into different options. Having the wine cellar to ourselves really added to a great experience.

We ended up going to Tenuta Torciano. It was one of the highlights of our trip. We ended up choosing to eat in the vineyard, and it was incredibly beautiful. We ate in a gazebo with the vines all around us, and it was just the 2 of us so it was very romantic! The 4 course homemade lunch was delicious. Andy provided so much information, along with tastings of 12 wonderful wines. It is a family run business and you could feel the love. At 65€ it was a bargain!!

We continue to buy wine from there and have it delivered to our home. We not only love the wine, it brings us back to the wonderful day we spent there - until we can go again! I am glad you enjoyed it.

We are looking to do something similar. Quick stop in Pisa followed by a winery tour/lunch. More interested in the countryside and the winery.

But we will be renting a car and driving ourselves. Is Tenuta Torciano the place to go? Are there other recommendations?

We are looking to do something similar. Quick stop in Pisa followed by a winery tour/lunch. More interested in the countryside and the winery.

But we will be renting a car and driving ourselves. Is Tenuta Torciano the place to go? Are there other recommendations?

Torciano is a great winery. We loved it. Don't know if they have walk ins except to purchase wines. We were with a group which stopped there, had a wonderful artisan lunch with awesome wine pours. Bought some wines. They have some distribution in the States as well. If you are able to have lunch and the owner's daughter is there, she is a real hoot. I'd go back there in a heartbeat. Hope it works out for you.

We are looking to do something similar. Quick stop in Pisa followed by a winery tour/lunch. More interested in the countryside and the winery.

But we will be renting a car and driving ourselves. Is Tenuta Torciano the place to go? Are there other recommendations?

If you decide to go there, just make sure you make a reservation online. It is very easy and worth it.