Florence — Around the World in a Bottle

Beviamo a Firenze

Here is what I love most about Florence - while I have visited many times, I still find new and beautiful places to enjoy wine every time I go.

These are a few wine shops I recommend. Tip: Buy a bottle to take to your hotel or back home.

WINE SHOPS

Eataly Florence has a food market on its first floor, but the entire second floor is devoted to wine. This place is excellent for table wine and high end or rare wines. I once found a 25-year-old Vin Santo that was the best I've ever had. - Enoteca Cealleri del Chianti. I come here so often the owner remembers what wine I purchased last time and asks how I liked it. He carries an array of unique corkscrews and other wine accessories, but his real talent is in his stock of rare and highly sought-after vintage wines, which he keeps in the back room. Though not cheap, most are impossible to find elsewhere.
Mercato Centrale has a few wine shops, but they usually don't carry anything special, and their prices are for unknowing tourists.
Enoteca Millesmi is a bit of a walk, but the shop is above a 600-year-old wine cellar. You must ask to enter the cellar but be aware after 30 minutes of looking and hitting my head (the ceiling is very low) the bottle I chose was sold and on hold for another customer.

WINE BARS

There are hundreds of wine bars around the city, so finding one you feel is clean and comfortable is my advice.

Enoteca Pitti Gola e Cantina started small and now has a cult following. I know "the boys" well, and if you visit a few times during your stay, you might be rewarded with very generous pours of wines you probably have never heard of.
Golden View/Signorvino, although different establishments they are next to one another. GV is a favorite lunch destination with the possibility of scoring a table at a window directly over the Arno River. Their Brunello list is impressive, and they aren't exactly giving away the good stuff when it comes to pricing.
SE*STO is my favorite wine bar not so much for their selection but because it has one of the best rooftop bars in all of Florence. A romantic destination if there ever was one.
Hotels with nice bars are Helvetia and Bristol and my go-to Hotel Savoy, which is the epitome of elegance.