Adding a Few Sips of Wine to My Editor’s Italian Itinerary
[As a toast to all those who were able to vote yesterday, I offer some good travel advice from guest blogger and thriller author Gina Fava to her editor. Thank you, Gina. My apologies again for not including your lovely pictures—I don’t include them to speed up loading on slower systems and browsers. Readers can see them in Gina’s original post.]
Amanda’s Italian Itinerary While sharing a bottle of Castello Banfi’s Rosso di Montalcino 2006, with my editor and friend, Amanda—more on her professional editing company later—we poured over photos from a recent trip my family and I had taken to Italy.
She told me that she and her husband had dreamed of visiting Italy someday as the ultimate anniversary gift to each other. They even had their ideal itinerary planned, which included such cultural gems as Florence, Rome, and Venice.
I told her to scrap the plan. (Cue the scratch of the needle on the vinyl album.)
Romantic anniversary, trip to Italy, lovers of fine wine? Redo. Add some wine to this itinerary, and now you’ve got something to write home about! A trip with such promise MUST incorporate a drive through the hills of Tuscany.
Here’s some advice: Before you leave the States, check any imported bottle of your favorite Italian fine wine, search the web for the location of the producer, and then add it to your itinerary. Any travel agency can hook you up with accommodations and wine tours, such as AAA or check the internet for a reputable company like www.tuscanwinetour.net.
Better advice? Ditch the train schedule, rent a car (we went through www.AutoEurope.com for the best rates), and lose the GPS. Instead, get lost on the single lane road (S222) that winds through the vineyards, olive groves, and castle-dotted estates of central Italy. Pull over at any roadside enoteca di vino (local wine shop) to sample and purchase gorgeous wines, or tour a larger producer’s facility to learn how wines are made.
Countryside towns like Montepulciano and San Gimingnano boast enoteche built atop subterranean wine cellars centuries ago. Other towns, like Montalcino, have an enoteca built right into a castle. Villas and countryside inns abound between Siena and Florence, often offering homemade meals and self-produced vintages. Drive, sample, stay overnight, repeat.
One of Italy’s oldest and most renowned vintners is Castello Banfi. Last summer our family made it a point to include this producer in our own drive through Tuscany, just outside Montalcino center. It MADE the entire trip. Here’s why:
- Banfi set us up with a private tour of their magnificent facility. Even my children were amazed at the immense maze of pipes that connected the gargantuan barrels inside the factory and the warehoused cellars.
- After, we enjoyed the best dinner of our lives at Taverna Banfi, where we feasted on a five-course Tuscan menu paired with their finest wines. You don’t have to be a sommelier like my husband to know what a treat this is. Click on the link to get a taste of their sumptuous multi-course menus and pairings.
- Had a little too much to eat? Imbibed one too many? Or just want to stay a little longer to tour the castle, balsameria (homemade balsamic wine tasting), glass museum, and grounds? Stay the night in one of their luxury rooms or suites at Il Borgo.
Needless to say, I’ve convinced Amanda to explore Tuscany, and, while Rome, Florence, and Venice are truly places for which my heart always yearns, no trip to Italy is complete without a tour of Tuscany.
Who’s Amanda? Who is this lovely friend who hopes to one day embark on this super-adventure?
Amanda Clark is the President and Editor-in-Chief of Grammar Chic, Inc. based in Charlotte, North Carolina. According to the Grammar Chic website, “Grammar Chic, Inc. is a full-service Literary Consultancy that offers professional writing services that can address any need within the sphere of the written word.”
Amanda and her exceptional team professionally edited both of my novels, The Race and The Sculptor. I’m very pleased with the job that she did, and with her top-notch professionalism.
[Steve’s note: For many authors, it’s hard to be objective when they are editing their own work. Editors like Amanda and her team can be invaluable in turning your MS into a polished gem. Normally I don’t promote services for authors here, but since Gina recommends Amanda, you have a place to start. My eBook formatter, Donna Carrick, from Carrick Publishing, also offers this service. Many author websites and book review sites also have a list of editors. If you can develop a personal relationship with your service providers, like Gina and me, you will be way ahead.]
Well, I hope I’ve convinced you, dear reader, to incorporate a Tuscan tour into your Italy plans. Let me know if you need more details, and remember to drink responsibly. I’d love to hear your adventure stories of Tuscan travel! Do you have a favorite winery, comfy villa, or superb cheese shop to pass along?
In libris libertas….
