Trip to Italy Day 5 & 6 – Supper At Osteria il Re Gallo And A Wine Tour

When we flew to Italy on Sun, Kathy’s fiancée, Keith couldn’t make the trip due to an unknown visa issue so he drove to Minneapolis for an 8am Monday appt. with the immigration folks to get his new passport at 3pm.  He then drove back to Nebraska and caught a Wednesday flight that got him into Rome around 8am on Thu. which was followed by a bus ride for us to pick him up in Siena around 2pm to begin his vacation with us. 

That morning, Kathy went to the store and made a stop at the café next door (Bar Italia) for a cappuccino.

Trip To Italy –Day 4, Montalcino And The Veranda

We’ve had to make a few changes to our plan as Keith did not make the original flight with us due to a passport issue so he had to wait until Monday (we left on Sat), go to Minneapolis to get a valid passport then fly to Italy on Wed, getting here on Thursday.  As a result, we moved forward a day to Wed for our trip to the Montalcino wine area to try one of Italy’s great wines – Brunello.  Before leaving home, we had a typical breakfast.

Trip To Italy –Day 2 & 3 , Castellina and Cooking Class

After a good nights sleep, we were ready for our first full day in Castellina and to do a little recovering from out trip.  While researching our trip with wine tasting as a big part, my research found several listings for Tuscan Wine Regions but the consensus seems to be Chianti, Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano, Bolgheri, Vernaccia di San Gimignano, and Carmignano and one of my thoughts was to visit them all but I reduced it to five or six.  The Chianti, Chianti Classico, Brunello di Montalcino, Vino Nobile di Montepulciano regions use Sangiovese grapes, Bolgheri wines known as the Super Tuscans use international grapes more typical for French Bordeaux’s, Vernaccia di San Gimignano is known for its dry white wine made from the Vernaccia grape, and Carmignano wines are typically a blend of Sangiovese and international grapes such as cabernet.

So, to begin this day, we went to the Squarcialupi Taverne (located in the hotel) for their buffet breakfast which seemed typical of Italian breakfast and very different than American.  The restaurant is located on the main street of the old city which is closed to vehicles and it lined with touristy businesses.

Long Awaited Dream Trip To Italy – Travel and Day 1

For many years, we have been talking about a trip to Tuscany and we finally realized that at our ages, it was now or never so we began planning the trip.  Since we recently sold our small apartment complex, we had the funds that we could also take our kids so we planned a one month visit for us and invited each of the four kids to join us for a week.  Unfortunately, son Eric had just changed jobs and was unable to make the trip but we went for a month anyway.  Our plan included 19 days in Tuscany, 3 days just south in Umbria and the final week on the Sorrentine Peninsula (location of the Amalfi Coast) just south of Naples.  

Oh Wow, Grilled Albacore Tuna With Citrus Herb Marinade & Dot's Pretzels

Now that Cindy is back from a Florida visit, I have someone to share fish meals with as she is also a big lover of all things seafood.  Since she is a big fan of tuna and I have plenty of Albacore, it seemed like the logical meal choice and an opportunity to try a different recipe from the previous meal.  The recipe for Grilled Albacore Tuna WithCitrus Herb Marinade came from Wild Tides Seafoods  and I followed the marinade recipe as written even though I had two loins vs. steaks.  

Totally Delicious Lemon Garlic Butter Flounder And Asparagus

After a three-day battle with Norovirus and 14 lb. weight loss, on the fifth day, I decided I was ready to try something to eat other than boiled potatoes and my choice was a nice piece of flounder from the freezer along with some fresh asparagus.  To make it a one pot meal and cook one of our favorite fish dishes, I decided to cook everything in lemon butter garlic sauce.

Bev's Trip And Delicious Asparagus Scramble From Leftovers

I’ve mentioned earlier that Bev and Pat are in St. Marten and oddly most of the pics she sends me look like these.