Walking around the town, it looked like lots of the houses were missing their facades as well, so maybe it was considered fashionable back in the day. I actually like the look on the houses, but it's very depressing on a cathedral.



Montepulciano is also famous for its wine, which sits between brunello di Montalcino and Chianti in terms of prestige. There's certainly a lot more of it than of brunello, judging by the prevalence of wine shops. But the wine shops we visited was quite attractive, and the owner very knowledgeable about all the reasons that montepulciano actually makes the best wine in the world.