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greve in chianti |
| The "Chiantigiana" road meanders south through picture-pretty wine-villages
for 28km to the amiable market town of GREVE IN CHIANTI . Cafés,
restaurants and enoteche line the arcades of its attractive central
Piazza Matteotti . This long, sloping triangle hosts the regular
Saturday market and is overlooked by a statue of local boy Giovanni da
Verrazzano , who became, in 1524, the first European to see Manhattan
island. Greve's tourist office is in a hut in the Parco di Sant'Anna, alongside the main Viale Verrazzano 1km north of Piazza Matteotti (Mon-Fri 10am-1pm & 3-6pm, Sat 11am-1pm & 4-6pm; tel 055.854.6287, comunegreve@ftbcc.it ; check out also www.greve-in-chianti.com ). Chianti'Pop has Internet access, Via Roma 36 (tel 055.854.6280, www.chiantipop.net ; L3000/¬1.55 for 15min). For picnic supplies, head for Macelleria Falorni, Chianti's most famous butcher, a fixture on Piazza Matteotti since 1729 ( www.falorni.it ), and then choose a bottle from the Enoteca di Gallo Nero, Piazzetta Santa Croce 8 ( www.chianticlassico.it ). Greve's September wine fair is one of the largest such events in Tuscany. Albergo del Chianti is a straightforward three-star hotel at Piazza Matteotti 86 (tel & fax 055.853.762, www.albergodelchianti.it ; L120,000-150,000/¬61.98-77.47), with air-con and a pool. Hilltop Castello Vicchiomaggio , Via Vicchiomaggio 4 (tel 055.854.709, fax 055.853.911, www.vicchiomaggio.it ; L150,000-200,000/¬77.47-103.29) is a more luxurious option: a ninth-century castle resplendent amidst vineyards, boasting a top-flight restaurant, old-fashioned rooms and apartments, and regular half-day cookery classes. But the most charming choice is Villa Vignamaggio , 3km south of Greve, at Via Petriolo 5 (tel 055.854.661, fax 055.854.4468, www.vignamaggio.com ; L150,000-200,000/¬77.47-103.29) with a choice of en suite rooms and self- contained apartments within the main villa, and a handful of small cottages dotted around the grounds. It was here that Kenneth Branagh filmed Much Ado About Nothing . There's no restaurant in this agriturismo , but the owners prepare a classic Tuscan dinner for their guests twice a week. Best restaurant is the pricey, traditional-style Giovanni da Verrazzano , Piazza Matteotti 28 (tel 055.853.189; closed Mon). Around the square you'll also find the easygoing Mangiando Mangiando at no. 80 (closed Mon), with an open kitchen serving light meals, and inexpensive Nerbone di Greve at no. 22 (closed Tues). |