Field trip to a winery in Greve!

On Saturday, Gina, Dee and I took a school trip to a winery in the Chianti Region of Tuscany in the ancient town of Greve. We toured a family-run vineyard which has been run by the same family for hundreds of years. Although we had some difficulty enduring the bus ride there, (the driver was speeding through steep hilltops and windy roads so fast that I thought we may end up gliding right off the road,) we made it! Poor Gina had the roughest time on the non air-conditioned, nauseating, crammed bus. Even still on the bus, the view was worth it! Looking out the window, I could see nothing but green and miles of neatly lined grape and olive trees. It was exactly how I imagined the Tuscany region to look.

Once we got dropped off at the bus stop, the family came in shifts of a few cars to bring us to their vineyard. We were greeted by a chubby, excitable, polka-dotted hot-dog dog and welcomed into their little farm house on a hilltop. A tiny old man introduced himself and welcomed us to an outside table, set with wineglasses and plates for some lunch overlooking the countryside. I almost died it was so cute!!!

We were served a variety of delicious, fresh cut breads drizzled in their homemade olive oil (fresh from the trees in their yard!), pizzas, prosciutto and other delicious things. Once we ate, we were presented with 4 types of Chianti wines for tasting. Then, we were given a tour of the facilities. We watched how the cultivate the wine, barrel it, crush the grapes, etc.

After the vineyard, we walked around the little town of Greve. Founded over 1,000 years ago, it was made as a war hide-out by church monks to protect civilians. It's all cobblestone and pedestrian-only. Situated on a tall hilltop, it overlooked all the surrounding vineyards.

It was perfect!