2017-10-28Amazing Tour & Experience. At the very top of the list of my travel experiences!
Rosemary Servidio
USA
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).
Truffle Hunting & Wine Tasting