SAFFRON AND WINE IN SAN GIMIGNANO Join our private tour to an organic farm, skillfully managed by two women, nestled in the breathtaking countryside between San Gimignano and Volterra. Enjoy their unique saffron production and the cultivation of various herbs, emblematic of Mediterranean vegetation. Delight in the aromatic presence of sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, and bay leaf.
The adventure continues in the afternoon with the visit to a winery in the San Gimignano region, producing the best Vernaccia wine!
Tired of crowdy and touristy places in Tuscany? This is the tour for you! A half-day dedicated to marvellous setting of rolling hills, unspoiled woods of authentic Mediterranean vegetation and elegantly farmed fields, only surrounded by peace, fresh air and fragrant perfumes of plants, herbs and flowers!
A wonderful lady and her family
During the visit to this small organic farm you have the chance to meet Elena, a gracious lady who inherited a middle-sized property from her parents and who had the vision of rising her kids in such a spectacular context. She leads the business partly helped by a sister and a brother and she is particularly good at creating delicious organic products with all the plants and vegetables she grows.
An alternation of colors and perfumes
Hardly anywhere else in our region you can find such a large variety of different spontaneus plants growing right next to a stunning vegetable garden and to a field of Mediterranean aromatic herbs! The visit to Elena’s farm allows you to familiarize with a huge variety of typical plants of the Mediterranean scrub, a thick and bushy vegetation growing in the coastal areas of Southern Europe dense with flowers, berries and aromatic leaves. You will learn about the mutliple uses of it that locals have been making for centuries.
Elena will be happy to show you the seasonal vegetables that she is growing in her garden and that will be brought to the table for your lunch: zucchini, eggplants, tomatoes, lettuce, bell peppers in the Summer but also cauliflower, pumpkins, leek in Autumn.
Furthermore,you will see how typical Mediterranean herbs grow and you will experience how they wonderfully smell. You will see sage, thyme, oregano, bayleaf, rosemarey and many more…
A delicious lunch al fresco
In the end of our visit to Elena’s organic farm you will sit in a little patio by her house and you will taste a series of mouthwatering delicacies made by her in person. You will have a bruschetta with her extra virgin olive oil and fine herbs, a salad of farro, or spelt, dressed with her fresh tomatoes, a selection of pickled vegetables, several delicious and very original sweet & sour jams that will pair a delicious local pecorino cheese, fresh and grilled vegetables of the season and a little dessert withsaffron. It will be a great buffet of produce cultivated within the property!
Visit to the winery and wine tasting
The journey continues with a visit to one of the most appreciated producers of the celebrated white Vernaccia di San Gimignano where to enjoy a guided tasting of a curated selection of 3 wines and an interesting visit to their wine cellars.
After the visit to the winery you can extend your day by visiting the town of San Gimignano on your own
Please note that saffron flowers grown in October and November only.
This is a list of specialties that you are likely to sample as part of the program of this tour. Please, note that the specialties of the tasting session and/or lunch may vary according to the season and the availability of the products in the day of the tour.
Pecorino cheese is the most famous cheese from Tuscany. It derives from sheep milk, from which the name comes: in Italian sheep is “pecora”. It can be fresh or long-aged and its taste can vary from mild to very sharp.
The best extra virgin olive oil is made with fresh Tuscan olives immediately squeezed after the harvest at an oil mill. The most common olives for Tuscan olive oil are frantoio, leccino, frantoio and madremignola.
A plate of different Tuscan cheeses, including a few different kinds of pecorino of different ageing, tricotta (a rare cheese based on regular ricotta) and baccellone, a fresh cheese the Tuscans eat with fava beans.
A salad of mixed seasonal vegetables including lettuce, radicchio and carrots. In Tuscany green or mixed lettuce salads are usually dressed with extra virgin olive oil, white wine vinegar and salt.
Cantuccini biscuits in Tuscany are one of the most common desserts. They are made of sugar, butter and eggs and they are refined with almonds. In some versions they have other nuts or chocolate.
In our tour we like showing you places off the beaten track and introducing you to Tuscan people with their personal stories, careers and characters.
You will have one of our guides with your party during the whole tour. Please, see below all the guides who can be with you.
During this experience you can also meet some of the Tuscan friends involved in the events. Please, see below which friends you are likely to encounter.
Massimo
guide
Massimo
Co-founder and owner at Arianna & Friends'
Ciao a tutti! It’s Massimo here.
I’m the “first one” of the friends of Arianna in order of appearance, as we first met me when we were… ehm … at the high school! Well, the first “activities” we arranged together were those many teenagers do, like going to rock concerts (long live Metallica!), barbecuing, drinking inexpensive wine, mainly with no understanding of it.
In over 25 years we became more serious adults; so serious that we finished university together and we then decided to start a business from scratch, back in 2007, in an area where nothing like this existed before.
I am a natural born teacher, as I’ve always liked sharing knowledge on the beauties of the world with other people. When I started sharing the wisdom of the local cuisine with visitors to Tuscany or showing them the rooted traditions behind a wheel of local pecorino cheese, I realized how fantastic my job is. In fact I discovered that being a wine & food guide is a sophisticated way of being a good teacher, so I can’t help but love it!
In the A&F team I’m the multi-language guide or assistant in all activities we offer, from cooking classes, to wine & food tours, from Italian language classes to vespa tours. In the low season I deal with the website development and content management.
As I am very curious, I spend all my free time travelling all over the world and of course going on learning as much as I can: over the last few years I took part in several seminaries on extra virgin olive oil, I started a three-year course to become a sommelier, I experienced a professional training to become gelato maker and I decided to never give up in learning the Arabic language.
Stay connected as we will soon come up with some new great ideas for your entertainment and enjoyment of our beautiful region!
Ci vediamo in Toscana!
Luca
guide
Luca
Tour leader and sales manager at Arianna & Friends'
Ciao Amici!! My name is Luca. I'm in my 40s and I'm for sure the craziest guide at Arianna & Friends
As all my other colleagues, I am a multi task personality in the company. I take care of bookings, I am one the content managers of our websites and I'm a tour leader.
When in season, I lead almost all types of tours and cooking classes at Arianna & Friends'. My favourite ones are the truffle, olive oil and vespa tours. Riding a vespa through our wonderful hills is a must to do while in Tuscany... of course only if you know how to ride a scooter!
When I started working for Arianna & Friends, back in 2011, I was only able to prepare a very simple "pasta al pomodoro" (pasta with tomato sauce). Now, after more than 10 years of cooking classes and thanks to our wonderful cooks, I am a very good chef (but please, don't tell it to my wife!).
My motto is "smile you are in Tuscany". I'm happy and very proud when I see people enjoying my country and having fun in Tuscany.
Join us! Join me! Let's have fun togheter!!
Moira
guide
Moira
Pisa city tour guide & and tour leader at Arianna & Friends'
Ciao a tutti! My name is Moira and I'm the "foreigner" here at Arianna & Friends! In fact I come from the north west of Italy, from the town of Turin, and I moved to Tuscany in 2012, falling immediately in love with the culture, the arts and foods and of course - my favourite! - wines of this beautiful region.
I started working at Arianna & Friends' back in 2013 as an assistant at the Tourist Information Office of a small hilltop village, where our office was initially located; then I got my licence as tour guide and I am today the city tour guide in the team for the main towns of Pisa, Volterra, San Miniato, but also for all our less famous tiny villages, which hide lots of secrets and such a loooong history!
Last year, together with my colleague Luca, we got a licence as official truffle hunters, but I'm still mainly a truffle eater!
When I'm not walking around in our amazing places talking about arts, culture and history, or discovering together with our guests the local specialties, you find me in the office, taking care of bookings and reservations.
I really hope to meet you soon to show you around our beautiful land, and as I come from another region, I can also reveal some of the secrets that Tuscan people will never confess!!
Elena and Elisa
friend
Elena and Elisa
Elena and Elisa are two very experienced and enthusiastic farmers of Sardinian origin who produce saffron, herbs, olive oil, grains and fruits in a spectacular farm in the woody hills between Volterra and San Gimignano. Their property is in one of the most panoramic locations in Tuscany, the quintessence of the Tuscan landscapes.
LOCATION OF ATTRACTIONS:
This tour takes place in the rural area between Volterra and San Gimignano.
MEET-UP LOCATION:
Unless differently specified, the tour guide meets you at a meeting point near Volterra or San Gimignano.
DURATION:
This program takes 3 hours. Time for transportation not included.
AVAILABILITY:
Available all the year through, from Mondays through Saturdays.
LANGUAGE:
This tour is available in English language. German, French, Spanish, Russian or Italian are also available with no surcharge.
DIFFICULTY LEVEL:
Easy
CHILD FRIENDLY:
Ideal for children
CLOTHING:
Comfortable shoes and clothes recommended.
FOOD RESTRICTIONS:
The foods served during this tour might contain gluten, lactose, nuts and alcohol. If you have any food restriction, please inform our personnel during the enquiry process.
TRANSPORTATION:
This program and its rates do not include transportation and are set on a self-driving base. For further information see the box "transportation options".
The destinations reached during this activity are in the Tuscan countryside, in areas off the beaten track that cannot be reached by public transport. We highly recommend renting a car or a scooter in order to reach them. As an alternative, we can offer a valued service by chauffeured car, van or minibus. Any cost of transportation is to be added to the rates displayed on the rate table of this page.
SAFFRON AND WINE IN SAN GIMIGNANO Join our private tour to an organic farm, skillfully managed by two women, nestled in the breathtaking countryside between San Gimignano and Volterra. Enjoy their unique saffron production and the cultivation of various herbs, emblematic of Mediterranean vegetation. Delight in the aromatic presence of sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, […]
SAFFRON AND WINE IN SAN GIMIGNANO Join our private tour to an organic farm, skillfully managed by two women, nestled in the breathtaking countryside between San Gimignano and Volterra. Enjoy their unique saffron production and the cultivation of various herbs, emblematic of Mediterranean vegetation. Delight in the aromatic presence of sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, […]
SAFFRON AND WINE IN SAN GIMIGNANO Join our private tour to an organic farm, skillfully managed by two women, nestled in the breathtaking countryside between San Gimignano and Volterra. Enjoy their unique saffron production and the cultivation of various herbs, emblematic of Mediterranean vegetation. Delight in the aromatic presence of sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, basil, […]
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