Siena is the gateway to the great southern Tuscan estates of Maremma, Montepulciano and Montalcino fame.  But with the city walls are some wonderful places to taste some of Italy’s finest reds.  Here are two such places.  (To refer to them simpy as wine bars seems to do them an injustice. 

> ENOTECA AI BIANCHIU 


Via Banchi di Sopra, 85; 
Tel# 0577-56011;
Web Site www.royaldemeure.com.
 Open Daily, 10 a.m. to 9:30 p.m.; Part of the Grand Hotel Continental, with access from the street, this intimate wine bar (and wineshop) is the perfect place for a predinner aperitif. Knowledgeable, English-speaking sommelier Manfredo Venditti serves Champagne, spumante, and red and white wines by the glass. Also on offer are well-priced bottles from Tuscany and beyond.

> ENOTECA I TERZI 


Via dei Termini, 7 
Tel# 0577-44329; 
Web Site: www.enotecaiterzi.it. 
Open Monday to Saturday, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. to 1 a.m. 
Cost Tastings $5-$15 
The entire 1,200-label restaurant wine list (see Where to Eat) is available for purchase by the bottle over the counter. The choice of 35 wines for tasting by the glass changes every month and ranges from simple whites and reds to Brunellos and Barolos.

> ENOTECA ITALIANA

Via Camollia, 72 ; Tel# 0577-228811;
Web Site:  www.enoteca-italiana.it. Open Monday to Saturday, noon to 1 a.m. 
Cost Tastings $4-$25 
This is a state-funded establishment, founded in 1960 in the beautifully restored, 16th-century Medici fortress. The brick-vaulted cellar houses a permanent exhibit of 1,800 wines from Tuscany and the rest of Italy.  A handheld device supplied on arrival reads the bar code on each bottle, triggering an audiovisual presentation about the wine. A printout at the end of the tour lists the wines marked for tasting and/or purchase by the bottle. Sommelier-guided tours are also available on request.

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 1st, 2009 at 1345 and is filed under Tuscany, Vino.