Montalcino is the producer of the world famous brunello di Montalcino wine, definitely Tuscany's best and among the top two or three in Italy. We bought a few bottles from the wine shop set up for tourists inside the castle, so I'm sure we got a very competitive price. We then walked around the nooks and crannies of this hilly town for a while, and headed for our next town.

We climbed to the top of the castle for absolutely stunning views of the town and the surrounding hills, still wrapped in morning mist. It was a long climb, and when we got to the top, Somchai realized he had left the camera in the car and couldn't decide if he should go back and get it. So I pleaded, "but what about the blog?!" so he went back down and up again for the blog's sake. (And yes, that is what we all learned in high school english class was an anachronism.)

80. Montalcino

Our last day in Tuscany, and also one of the best. Met up with Sylvio and his van in the morning, and drove southeast to Montalcino, probably my favorite town in Tuscany. The town was annexed by Siena in the thirteenth century, and this formidable fortress was built to defend the town. When Siena fell to Florence in 1552, the Sienese nobles fled here, and governed a make believe Siena in Exile for a few more years until Florence finally annexed Montalcino, its last conquest.