Podere Le Ripi — Attraction in Montalcino

I visited after booking via Airbnb (experiences) a 4pm tour of the vineyard with the tasting of a few brunellos and their flagship Bonsai. Unfortunately the booking was not something they had a record of and there was no tour at that time. (Lucky I called ahead too as the meeting point was meant to be in a vineyard nearby but wasn’t…)

They were nice enough to squeeze me into a tasting with others who were just about to start (but had just finished their vineyard tour) so I got to taste the wines. However I had to point out that the wines the offered where not what my tour listed (also the listing was of different vintages so they thought that the tour listing I had was out of date). Glad to say they kindly offered me their top wines on top of that but I’m disappointed I missed the vineyard tour as it was dark by the time I finished and there were no more tours occurring that late. Anyway not sure if it is Airbnb’s fault or theirs for not managing their online tours and platform partners but the people in the tasting room were great. Also the rating I give is on the wines tasted and that experience alone. I’m not faulting anything there. On other topics the winery is a tricky drive along steep dirt roads so not recommended after dark. I can’t rate the winery facilities as I also missed...

I did a lot of research on selecting vineyards that were unique and what I loved about this was that they are biodynamic, have a bonsai vineyard and have olive oil. The owner is also Francesco Illy if you are familiar with Illy coffee.

Biodynamic: Uncontaminated soil and the wine processes happen in a 100% ecological wine cellar, built to have zero impact on the environment.

Bonsai: It is the densest vineyard in the world meaning the vines are planted very close together which produce a very unique tasting wine.

Tour & Tasting: We did a tour of the vineyard, pagoda, cellar and did the actual tasting inside the tasting room by the terrace. We went to about 9 wineries while in Tuscany and Podere le Ripi had one of the most memorable tours.

We tasted: 2015 Toscana Rosso IGT 2014 Toscana Rosso IGT 2012 Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2011 Brunello di Montalcino DOCG Riserva 2005 Brunello di Montalcino DOCG 2016 Bonsai with delicious Parmesan cheese, bread and olive oil.

Our guide was very knowledgeable and made us feel right at home. We ended up buying 2 bottles plus a bottle...

I went to a wine tasting today! I tasted a total of 5 kinds of wine, and it was fun to compare each of them because they had a distinct charm.

The first wine starts with a light and fresh white wine! Thanks to the refreshing sami in the mouth, it was perfect as a starter wine.

The second wine was a rosse wine, and the weak dry aftertasta was impressive.

The third wine is light body red. It feels good to drink in summer!

The fourth wine is full-body red, which is strong and heavy, so I thought it would go well with meat dishes.

The last wine has a variety of aromas and tastes! Finish with a taste that gently wraps your mouth!

Overall, the styles of wine were diverse, and the explanation of the person who explained it was interesting, so I became more familiar with wine. I want to participate again next time if I have...