Additional Activities
This is a customized itinerary: it is possible to tailor it to your requirements and add additional activities and experiences upon request and you can choose among the following experiences, and more during your stay.
There is a wide range of activities that you can experience, such as Pizza and Pasta demonstrations, cooking classes, bike tours, hot air ballooning, horseback riding, golf, visits to the charming town and villages nearby such as Siena, San Gimignano, Volterra, Monteriggioni, Florence, etc.
The closest Michelin starred restaurants in the area are Arnolfo, located in Colle val d’Elsa 25 minute drive from the hotel, Il Colombaio, located in Casole d’Elsa only 15 minute drive from Castello di Casole, Osteria di Passignano located in Badia a Passignano, approx. 45 minutes from the hotel.
Wine Tour and Tasting
Tuscany has an abundance of wineries close by: guests can visit some of their favorites. The Chianti area is located approximately 1 hour from the estate. The towns of Castellina in Chianti, Gaiole in Chianti and Radda in Chianti are all located in this wonderful part of Tuscany, world famous for its soft green hills.
Please see below some options of wine tour and tasting that it is possible to arrange for the clients upon request:
Winery Poggio Amorelli:
Localita’ Poggio Amorelli, Castellina In Chianti, 53011 SI. Poggio Amorelli is a family run business winery where you can enjoy a pleasant wine tour and tasting. The tour includes the visit of the wine cellar, the vineyards (mind Oracolo, a big blond horse always around with a lamb and a ship!) and the final wine tasting of 5 wines. During the spring-summer time you can have lunch in their lovely terrace from where you will enjoy an amazing view. The wine tasting usually takes place in a private room where you will taste 5 different wines from their best selection (white wine, still or sparkling and red wines). The wine tasting will be accompanied by some typical Tuscan products and lasts about 45 minutes. If you wish you can have a wonderful, complete lunch at the winery after the tour, composed of various appetizers, a pasta course, a main course and dessert.
Winery Fonterutoli:
Fonterutoli, Castellina in Chianti. Another pleasant winery is the Fonterutoli winery, located 5 km south of Castellina in Chianti, in the heart of the Chianti Classico. Owned by the Mazzei family since 1435, it still retains its original form, that of a peaceful country village: a cluster of houses, the church of San Miniato and the villa, built at the end of the 1500s where the medieval castle once stood. The soil structure is the result of the disintegration of limestone and sandstone boulders and is very rocky, so much so that Fonterutoli wine is also known as “vino dei sassi”, or rock wine. They have recently built a spectacular underground cellar that guests can visit during the tours.
Tenuta Casanova:
Località Sant’ Agnese 20, 53011 Castellina in Chianti. This is a beautiful farm located in the heart of a cypress forest nearby the lovely village of Castellina in Chianti. At the beginning of the 1800’s Abbot Sprugnoli, a religious but very talented alchemist, gave birth to the splendid Casanova farm. The abbot refined the land’s production (wines, oils and vin santo), with rich aromas of the countryside, and destined it to the congregations and monasteries of the local towns. At the present days the winery is run by Rita and Silvano, that will welcome you for a wine tasting in the most friendly atmosphere. You can also combine the tour and tasting with a wonderful, tasty light lunch Kindly note that upon request you can enjoy a morning cooking class.
Castello di Volpaia:
Località Volpaia, Radda in Chianti. A very fine winery in Radda in Chianti is Castello di Volpaia, a fortified medieval village that has been converted into a winery. The interior of its ancient houses, underground passages and deconsecrated churches have been discreetly converted into wine cellars, bottling plants and olive presses all connected by an amazing underground “wineduct.” Visitors can take a guided tour of the castle cellars starting from the sacristy and ending up in the cellars of the various churches which are now dedicated to the making and aging of Volpaia wine.
Antinori nel Chianti Classico:
Via Cassia per Siena, 133, 50026 Loc. Bargino, San Casciano in Val di Pesa. The new Antinori winery is a jewel of contemporary architecture, and it is impressive for its beauty and majesty. The cellar was opened in 2012 and it is unique in Italy in its type, created in seven year of work. The tour will wind you through six centuries of history of the Antinori family and their passion in producing wine. You will be accompanied by their guides along a route which is, at the same time, historical and emotional, technical and architectural, culminating in a tasting of their wines. It is always possible to book a table at their restaurant Rinuccio for a wonderful, tasty lunch overlooking the Chianti hills.
Barricaia Tour:
The visit is conceived as a trip through the history of the family and the successive stages of the fermentation and aging of a wine. The tasting of several of the Antinori wines, naturally, is an essential part of the visit: a white wine produced at the Castello della Sala, the Bramito Umbria IGT and two red wines, the Peppoli Chianti Classico and the Villa Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva. Duration: one and a half hours.
Bottaia Tour:
The tour will lead guests through the various areas of fermentation and aging of the wines to the Bottaia, located in a reserved area of the cellar’s production zone. Guest will also visit the museum area that will offer the possibility of admiring some of the works of art from the family’s private collection. The visit will conclude with the tasting of the three wines that best represent the Chianti Classico zone: Villa Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva, Marchese Antinori Chianti Classico Riserva, and Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Gran Selezione. The tasting will take place either in the impressive suspended room or in the more intimate Bottaia room. Duration: two and a half hours.
Bottaia Cru tour:
An experience of the architecture, the flavors, and the emotions which will reveal both the full majesty of the cellar and the intensity of Antinori’s most representative wines. Cervaro della Sala, Pian delle Vigne Brunello di Montalcino, Badia a Passignano Chianti Classico Gran Selezione, and Tignanello will be tasted in the exclusive and intimate Bottaia room or in the impressive suspended room, a space with a view over the barrel cellar. The visit will finish in the “Rinuccio 1180” restaurant where Cont’ Ugo and Guado al Tasso and the dessert wine Muffato della Sala will accompany dishes from the Tuscan tradition re-elaborated in a contemporary vein.
Brunello area:
The Brunello di Montalcino is probably one of the most popular wines in the world. The name Brunello is a diminutive of Bruno, a male name which means brown, was given locally to what was believed to be an individual grape variety grown in the area. Montalcino is located about one and a half hours drive away from Castello di Casole, and it is also a beautiful town to visit.
Winery Casanova Dei Neri:
Podere Fiesole – SP 14 Via Traversa dei Monti, 53024 Montalcino (SI). Casanova di Neri is one of the best producers of the Brunello di Montalcino, located very close by the town.
The Experience Private Tour:
Includes a guided tour of the wine cellar and tutored wine tasting. The guests are invited to sit, sip and savor select wines in the comfort. The wines are paired with pecorino cheese, marmalade and bruschetta with our extra virgin olive oil.
