We had a great day with Andrea from Italy and Wine! From our truffle hunt at a gorgeous Tuscany estate, to a delicious truffle filled lunch followed by a visit to a small winery our group of three couples had a memorable time. We even found truffles!
Book it! We had an incredible day with Andrea tasting foods/wine + learning about the Tuscan region. Franchie and Choco (dog) were very friendly for the truffle hunt. Because we went in the off-season, my partner and I had a tour all to ourselves which was nice! 5 stars!
I know when traveling there are options when selecting a tour to make sure you are making the best use of your time and budget. I can wholeheartedly say that this is a tour that should not be missed, especially since it is paired with a tour of a local winery which other tours do not normally include. We were first picked up by the guide in Florence and then drive . It is a full day of exploring a beautiful section of Tuscany hunting with the truffle dog and the thrill of finding one of these nuggets is very exciting. You then share a meal utilizing local truffles which is a great experience. You complete the tour at a local winery with a winery tour and tasting. This entire day was very special and was only made better thanks to the knowledge and personality of our guide Giuseppi, who was fantastic. I definitely recommend this tour and this team.
Our truffle tour and wine excursion in Tuscany was an absolute delight! Celebrating my Mom’s 70th birthday we spent a fantastic day in the picturesque Italian countryside hunting for truffles alongside a charming dog companion. Hillary, our tour guide was exceptionally kind and helpful, providing insightful information about wine & truffle hunting and ensuring our group had a seamless and enjoyable time. The highlight was a delicious lunch featuring exquisite truffle-infused dishes, perfectly complemented by the beautiful surroundings. Following our truffle adventure, we visited a remarkable winery where we indulged in exceptional wines and learned wines of the region. The entire day was a perfect blend of culinary delights, natural beauty, and cultural exploration. I highly recommend this truffle tour and wine excursion to anyone seeking a memorable and enriching experience in Tuscany. Our heartfelt thanks to Hillary for making my Mom’s 70th birthday celebration truly special!
Amazing tour! We loved the combination of two events truffle hunting and wine tasting at a winery. Lunch was lovely and we tried 6+ wines throughout the day. Giulia was our guide and she was very knowledgeable, personable and clearly and expert in wine! Thank you for an awesome trip and would recommend to anyone looking for a great day!
Great experience with truffle hunt, followed by wine tasting. Hillary was great! Highly recommend!
My friend and I did a truffle and wine tour led by Hillary. She made this experience so amazing! Everyone needs to go on a tour with Hillary. She is knowledgeable about Italian history, the food, and the wine and explains everything in the most fun way! Such an enjoyable tour and day. Definitely one of my favorite memories of my time in Florence.
Hilary and the Truffle/Wine Tour was incredible. Hilary was incredibly knowledgeable and went out of our way to make sure we had a wonderful honeymoon. I'd highly recommend this This was the highlight of our trip to Italy!
We had an excellent truffle hunting and wine-tasting tour guided by Hillary. She was knowledgeable and generous with her stories and wisdom. She had us laughing and we felt so much more informed about Florence and Tuscany by the end of the day.
My husband and I recently took the Truffle and Wine Tour - we had an amazing time! Our guide, Hilary, was so knowledgeable, kind, and funny. She made the experience even better by answering all of our questions and going above and beyond. Francesca and Choco were experts and amazing at what they do. The hospitality and yummy food was 10/10.
My husband and I really loved our Truffle and Wine Tour with Hillary. Hillary was incredibly knowledgeable about the city of Florence, the surrounding wine regions, and the wine. Plus, her positive, fun, and friendly energy was enjoyable to be around! We felt adventurous walking through the forest in search of truffles with Choco the dog and we were excited to find 3 black truffles! Francesca cooked a beautiful lunch full of amazing flavors. The next winery stop was equally as amazing, with big bold reds and a beautiful tasting room and vineyard. We would highly recommend this for a unique experience and a great time in Tuscany!
The Truffle tour was a highlight of our trip to Italy. Julia was a fun and amazing guide, and Francesca was very welcoming and knowledgeable! Choco did an excellent job locating truffle, and the food was incredible. Overall the right mix of truffle hunting and enjoying delicious food and wine. Highly recommend to anyone in the area!
I loved the truffle hunting and winery tour. Giovanni and Francesca were informative and friendly. While Choco the dog did most of the heavy lifting hunting truffles we got to watch and learn a lot. Great way to spend a day and learn about Tuscany. Also the winery they took us to was great. We got to learn about their processes and products and how they have been organic for decades!
The truffle and wine tour was one of the top highlights of our trip to Italy. It was a lot of fun to see Choco the dog find truffles, and the meals at Francesca’s house were some of the best we had in Italy. Vittorio was very knowledgeable, and we learned a lot about wine and truffles. Relaxing day with the perfect mix of activities and delicious food and wine. Thanks Vittorio, Francesca, and everyone at the vineyard for making this such an enjoyable day! We would highly recommend this unique experience!
I did this tour alongside my husband, sister-in-law, & mother-in-law and we all had a fantastic time! Matteo is extremely knowledgeable and charismatic. I highly recommend this tour if you'd like to have a wonderful time up in the mountains, looking for truffles, enjoying a wonderfully tasting meal paired with a delicious selection of wine, and gaining appreciation about all you've just learned. Francesca and her family were extremely polite and welcoming during our time there & I will forever treasure that moment spent with them. The food was beyond amazing! Oh, I was even celebrated during our lunch as it was my birthday! Shout-out to Choco, who guided us to the truffles! He is extremely cute-I can't get over him! It was just an overall fabulous tour! During our visit we were also taken to Fattoria San Michele a Torri where we had a wine tour, tasting and learned about their extra virgin olive oil, which we purchased (it's a must!). The ladies who guided us were great and are also very knowledgeable & pleasant. The experiences we gained make for a lifetime of memories from this tour. Thank you to all! I am extremely grateful
We had Hilary Grass as our tour guide and sommelier for the day. She was amazing!! From when we first met, she was very outgoing and easy to talk to. She taught us about the history and culture of not only Florence and San Miniato, but of all of Italy. She kept the truffle hunt interesting, and fun, and pointed out the soil, olive trees, bay leaves, and more interesting facts throughout the truffle hunt. We found 3 white truffles with her, Francesca, and their "star of the show", Ciocco. Afterwards, we ate the most delicious truffle lunch!!! Best food we ate in Tuscany hands down!!! After we were done, she took us to a local boutique vineyard and taught us how to taste, smell, and identify good wine. During the entire experience, she gave us recommendations for wine, places to eat, and where to buy certain items. She was an amazing tour guide, and made the experience unforgettable!! She gave great recommendations. At each stop, there are opportunities to buy their products, but they never make you feel pressured into buying anything.
This was a wonderful experience. We were picked up in Florence by Vittorio, our sommelier, and drove to a private farm in San Miniato to search for truffles with Francesca, an experienced hunter and Cioco, her skilled dog. Once we began to hunt on the beautiful estate, Cioco almost immediately found a white winter truffle. As we continued, we found more white truffles and several black truffles. After returning to Francesca's residence, we had a home cooked meal served family style with bruschetta, charcuterie, tomatoes, freshly made pasta, and a citrus custard paired with three of the family's wines. Each course had fresh truffles, with the dessert topped with truffle honey. Every product was procured from the estate. It was easily one of the best meals we had in all of our trip to Italy. After, we went to a local winery and were served three wines with charcuterie. Vittorio showed us the process of wine making and demonstrated how to taste both wine and olive oil as a sommelier would. The whole experience was intimate and we learned far more than other tastings we have been done. Thank you all!
I wanted to let you know how splendid of a time we had on our tour with Hillary. She is a lovely person, jovial and congenial, and extremely knowledgeable, especially about wines. Everyone highly enjoyed the truffle search, Choco, and the scrumptious lunch. We also enjoyed the Chianti tasting and learning more about the wines of the Chianti region as they are not as well known in the US. In fact, yesterday we were excited to already locate two wines with Black Rooster labels at our local store and were able to use the knowledge she imparted on us while ordering wines at dinner throughout our trip. This adventure was certainly one of the highlights of our trip to Italy.
Vittorio and Francesca provide a fantastic experience hunting for truffles, before then offering guests a superb lunch using the freshly unearthed truffles and local delicacies. Vittorio then took us to a wine tasting in the heart of the Chianti region, which was enlightening as well as gloriously tasty - I would highly recommend this experience!
The truffle hunting & wine tour experience was one of the best and most authentic I have ever booked. Vittorio was an amazing host & you can tell he puts a great deal of planning and preparation into each experience to ensure the day exceeds expectations. We started the day truffle hunting with the truffle Hunter and her dog. Vittorio explained everything along the way & we learned so much. He even took photos & emailed them to us! Next, we had an authentic Tuscan lunch prepared by the truffle hunter using her own recipes and truffles of course paired with wines from her winery. So delicious! Finally, we ended the day at an organic winery. We were given a tour & then Vittorio (who is also a sommelier) taught us the tricks of how to properly taste wine. This was a truly personalized & amazing way to end the day! We learned so much! I would give this experience more stars if possible and I guarantee if we are ever back in Tuscany again I will be booking another experience with Vittorio & his partners at Italy and Wine.
The tour was amazing! Our guide, Hilary, was super fun and very knowledgeable. We had a great time driving out of Florence into the countryside and learning about the food and history of the region. The truffle hunt was fun and we got to learn a lot about the area. For the wine tours, we had an excellent time tasting several good wines. Hilary was delightful and led us through a great experience during the tasting. If you can, I'd highly recommend her for your tours.
When our original truffle hunt tour with another company was cancelled I searched the internet and found the Italy and Wine website. After checking the wonderful reviews on TripAdvisor, we booked the tour and are so glad we did. This tour was the highlight of this trip to Italy. We were picked up in Firenze by Vittorio and brought to the village of San Minato for the truffle hunt. When we arrived at the estate, we met Francesca, the young lady who conducted the hunt and her two dogs Ciocco and Nana. They are a breed called Lagotto Romagnolo. Ciocco was the veteran truffle hunting dog and Nana was in training. We hiked through the woods accompanied by Vittorio, Francesca and the dogs and found a handful of truffles. We learned about the the breed of dog, how they are trained, how truffles grow, the effects of the weather and the regulations involved. After the hunt, we returned to the estate and had an amazing pranzo that of course included truffles. We especially liked that the hunt and lunch only included us and another couple. My husband and I prefer small group tours and seek them out whenever we travel. After lunch, we went to Fattoria San Michele a Torri in Sandicci for a tasting of Chianti wines with our host Gianna. Gianna gave us a tour of the facility and provided information about the land and types of grapes grown on the vineyard. Vittorio is a sommelier and provided great insight into the wine and the proper tasting techniques. We also tasted some super tuscans and learned about the history of how that label was created. My husband and I were so glad that the other company cancelled their tour and we got to experience this special day with Vittorio, Francesca and Gianna (and Ciocco and Nana too).
Great time on our Truffle Hunting and wine tasting tour. So glad we picked this tour! Hilary (our tour guide) was amazing and super knowledgeable on wine and was happy to provide a lot of history on just about anything you have a question on. It is a full day that will leave you with a lot of great memories.
A fantastic day with Hillary. Great travel, wines, and conversation. Changed the group plans to our liking when we mentioned a restaurant we had been to which produced their own wine, fantastic wines tasted and all with the expert knowledge of Hilary. Great food after truffle hunting, found 4 delicious smelling truffles. And the food was divine.
This tour was one of the highlights of our trip. When was the last time you went scouting the forest with an expert truffle hunter and her talented truffle-hunting dog, then ate delicious truffle-based dishes with lovely wine? We were picked up on time by our amazing guide, Raffaella. On the way to San Miniato she explained all we needed to know, describing the areas we were passing by, and getting to know us a bit better. The ride was very comfortable, and we arrived in less than an hour, ready to tackle the woods. In San Miniato we were greeted by the hunter, Francesca. We were given rain boots to be able to walk in the woods comfortably, then met Cioccho the hunting dog. And off we went to the woods! Cioccho is a renowned hunting dog — and didn't disappoint. We walked at a good pace within the forest, Francesca working alongside her dog, guiding it, distinguishing false alarms from real findings, and most importantly, making sure Cioccho didn't eat the truffles! In an hour and a half we discovered two black truffles and two white truffles, to the group's excitement. Smelling white truffles picked from the undergrowth was a unique experience. On the way back to the house, we walked along the olive trees, with a stunning view of the Tuscan hills. We arrived hungry, and ready to eat (and drink). We were quickly directed to a lovely dining room and given fresh water. Then, wine! And then, delicious dishes made with fresh black and white truffles. We finished the meal with an amazing dessert, home-made Vin Santo, and coffee. Every dish was simply delicious. We continued chatting a bit, sipping the Vin Santo, then left to the wine-tasting part of the tour. We got a tour of the winery, learned about the process of winemaking, and about tasting techniques. We tasted three different Chianti: two relatively young (2012 and 2014) DOCG, and a "super Tuscan" IGT. I am not a big fan of Chianti, but the wines were enjoyable and our winery guide was knowledgeable and friendly, guiding us and letting us discover the tastes and scents that one can notice in these wines. We also tasted an incredibly-delicious olive oil produced locally, with homemade bread and local cheeses. So we had a great time at the winery, before returning to Firenze: we were dropped right next to the best ice cream shop in town... ;-) So, thank you Raffaella, Francesca, Ciocco, Maria Luisa and Enrica for the lovely day. We will visit you again!
This has easily been the highlight of a vacation in Italy and Greece! Francesca and Pierpaolo were both amazing! So knowledgeable and patient. Choco, the truffle hunting dog was pretty impressive as well. The food was delicious as was the wine and olive oil! Definitely recommend!
We chose this tour among several tempting tours in Florence because of the unique combo of a truffle hunting excursion, truffle-themed lunch, and a tour of a Chianti-region winery (not to mention meeting an adorably truffle-hunting dog!). The day was very well-paced, and our tour guide, Hillary, was extremely helpful in imparting her knowledge of Chianti wines and regional flavors! Having worked in the wine industry and being a sommelier, Hillary was great at helping us figure out the best wines (also prosciutto and olive oil) to try while in Tuscany. We left the 6-hour excursion with a new outlook on the Tuscan food, wine, arts, and even fashion culture (did you know some of the biggest Italian fashion families live in Florence? We didn't, but Hillary was great at filling us in!) If you enjoy learning as much as we do, you shouldn't miss out on this tour!