Chianti Wine Tastings

A shared half-day coach tour with two wineries starts at $62 per person online, and self-guided e-bikes at $51. Small-group minivan tours run $120 to $240, and a private car with driver about $490 per person. If you get to the estate yourself, a tasting alone costs roughly EUR 15 to 70. The price guide breaks it down.

Chianti Classico is the historic heart between Florence and Siena, around Greve, Panzano, Castellina, Radda and Gaiole, with the black rooster seal on every bottle and at least 80% Sangiovese. Plain Chianti comes from a much larger area around it, with eight subzones and looser rules. Read Chianti vs Chianti Classico.

Not all of them. Some cheap half-days from Florence taste near San Gimignano, which is Vernaccia and Chianti Colli Senesi country, and the e-bike day rides the hills around Impruneta. The Gray Line half day drives the Chiantigiana through Greve, but guests name its second estate as Poggio ai Laghi near Monteriggioni, just outside. The private tour and the Fiat 500 lunch at Castellina stay inside. Check the stops on each tour page.

Usually six to eight. The two-winery half days pour three or four wines at each stop, with cheese, salami and bruschetta. The full-day Siena and San Gimignano tour has one winery and two or three wines. One guest summed it up: about 8 wines, all lovely.

Only on some. The half-day coach tours serve snacks with the tastings, not a meal, and the full-day town tour leaves lunch to you. The Vespa tour, the e-bike day, the semi-private day and the olive oil trail include a proper lunch at a farm or winery.

A half day (five to five and a half hours) gives you two wineries and the drive through the hills, and leaves your evening in Florence free. A full day either adds towns like Siena and San Gimignano, with less wine, or adds a long lunch and a third estate. See half day or full day.

Yes. Autolinee Toscane bus 365 runs from Florence to Greve in Chianti, where you can taste at a wine shop or walk to a nearby estate, and some wineries such as Antinori in Bargino sell tastings online. Driving yourself is the hard part: Italy's limit is 0.5 g/l, and zero for drivers with a licence under three years. See Chianti without a car.

May, June, September and October. The harvest runs from mid-September into early October, the hills are green in late spring, and July and August are hot. In winter most tours still run, but some estates cut their hours. More in the best time to go.

The coach tours meet at Piazzale Montelungo, a short walk from Santa Maria Novella station. The Vespa and olive oil tours meet at Via dei Vagellai near Santa Croce, the small-group Classico van at Porta Romana, and the semi-private and private tours pick you up at your hotel.

On the coach tours, yes, with a child discount, but only adults taste: Italy does not serve alcohol to under-18s. A full day with three towns suits families better than a winery-only half day. On the Vespa tour drivers must be 18 with a car licence, and kids ride as passengers.

Every tour here cancels free up to 24 hours before the start, except the private Chianti tour, which is non-refundable. Book that one only when your dates are fixed.