For a brief while our friends at Sovereignty Wines had an allocation of a very nice DOCG Chianti from just west of Florence, via the Piazzano estate.  We liked it so much it demanded an investigation via Google Earth:

West of Florence, in the heart of the Tuscan wine paradise.

Drilling in a bit, we get some perspective for the closeness to the Firenze metropolitan area, while maintaining the rural roots that embody the terroir.

Beautiful.  We’re getting closer.  Note the purposefully repurposed plots of land, the agrarian sense of the place nestled close to developed areas…yet far enough out there in the Tuscan countryside to be what you’d want a Tuscany winery to be.

Aerial closeups.

And finally some earth level views that give up a sense of how magical this place is.  The upright Tuscan cypress, the dry but fertile fields…magic all around.

Look at that view.  You can see why expatriates from other countries give it up, all of it…the houses, the cars, the bank accounts, etc to go live in and amongst the Tuscans.