radda in chianti today. lunch at le vigne. shared 4 antipasti of which the eggplant rolls were the best, lemon and artichoke salad was too bland. had chicken stewed in shallots, which was nicely done. others had pasta dishes pappardelle in hare sauce, tagliatelle with goose heart and pici (pasta was too think and doughy though the sauce with eggplant was good). A also had the roast duck with bacon, which had the texture and taste of cooked ham. shared 3 desserts, lemon pie (quite good but a bit too sweet), flourless chocolate cake and cheese cake (which tasted more like cream cake). kid-friendly place with quite a few running in and out of the dining room. service quite slow though. total 155. no coperto, but 15% service charge.
back to radda after lunch, tiny pleasant village.


first wine-tasting stop at castello di volpaia, which could be circumnavigated in under 5 min. left the wine-tasting to A, W and D while E and i did just that. despite its tiny size, volpaia had a constant stream of tourists and in particular, germans dressed for hiking.


first day of full sunshine and bright light. summer must be a total scorcher. eventually started on our hike at 5.30pm. not as scenic as the trebbio hike, mostly through greenery with some glimpses of the hillside and some vineyards. took about 2 hours.
picked up seafood and anchovy pizzas and mushroom calzone at rufina’s il ritrovo for dinner back at the villa.